Winner Take All
by o Mischief Managed
Summary: "Like it or not, you're their hero. And isn't a real hero someone who helps people find the strength in themselves?" The Immortal War: A battle that's raged between humans and ghosts for over two years. When finally it heralds the imminent End of the World, Danny finds he has one chance to prove that the Earth deserves to be saved. Post PP. -Adaptation of the Biblical Apocalypse-
1. Prologue

Hey-ya! Man, I feel like I've been working on this story FOREVER... And it's finally ready to be posted! Woo-hoo! Okay, a few things I need to establish first.

1: A warning: As the summary says, this is about the Biblical Apocalypse – which means there are some religious themes. GRANTED – I'm focusing much more on the **darker side** of religion than the lighter, and this is by no means meant as a sermon. I'm not trying to teach a lesson, nor am I trying to convert anyone. There's no praying or anything like that, I don't even go into that much detail on the subject. This is STRICTLY FOR **ENTERTAINMENT** PURPOSES. You ever see the movie Constantine? It's kind of that level of relation to religion. It's there, but it's not… like, happy, if you get what I mean. You don't have to be Christian to enjoy this, in my opinion (it may actually be better if you're not, because I sort of made up or re-interpreted a lot of the events, heh heh). Bottom line: **this is about the characters from the show, NOT about their religious views. I literally don't even go into that at all.** (Okay, so that came out as more of a disclaimer than a warning... But you catch my drift)

2: Yes, this is post-Phantom Planet, and for the sake of this story, we're saying that the events from PP happened in **August 2007**, when it actually aired. Kay? Kay. That being said, this takes place in October/November 2010 (which wasn't the past when I started writing this, haha).

3: DISCLAIMER: Naturally, I don't own Danny Phantom or any of its characters/locations/themes/etc., otherwise my name would be all over the credits.

Short prologue is a go!

* * *

_**-Prologue-**_

It was chaos. Utter chaos. There was no other word for it – at least none that I knew. After all that I'd seen the past two and a half years, nothing had ever seemed bad enough to be considered chaos. But this… This was different. This was crazy. This was insane. This was complete and utter destruction – madness. Everywhere I looked… I couldn't escape it.

"Look out!" someone screamed from what sounded like a few yards to my left. I turned just in time to see a building—I could no longer tell which building used to be which, they all looked the same now—crumble to rubble, trapping two men underneath it. I'd seen this happen so many times in the last few days, the last few minutes… You'd think I'd have gotten used to it. But could you get used to watching someone die before your eyes?

Rather than stand there and wait to be crushed myself, I picked up my ecto-gun and tightened my Hover Gloves around my wrists, and started running. I didn't know where I was going, or what I was looking for, but still I ran. And I didn't look back.

The wind whipped my hair across my face, slashed at my arms and legs. It felt as though the wind were hurling daggers across my skin. It was difficult to see, and to hear. There were so many sounds. So many sounds… It was like the air itself was screaming at us, howling in pain. I could barely hear the voices of the victims all around me… Human and ghost alike. No one was spared in this disaster. Not anyone.

Suddenly a great roaring—greater than the crying wind—seared through the air, and the ground quaked beneath my feet. I tapped the round heat circle on my left glove and jumped into the air, just as a great _crrrack_ ripped the street in two, leaving a wide and menacing chasm running through the city. It was like a great maw had opened in the earth, ready to swallow us all whole. All around people who could not get away fast enough were falling… Plummeting into the endless pit. Disappearing into the darkness. Others were screaming, crying. Shouting. I could hear them, but at the same time I couldn't. I could see them, but I couldn't. What was real? What was happening? How? Why? I had given up on understanding. I had learned that these past six days. Maybe we weren't meant to understand.

"Sam!"

I turned in the air. Someone called my name. I had heard it, I was sure. Then I saw them. Tucker was pulling Jazz out of a pile of rubble. She was alive. Injured, but alive. I was grateful to see them. So grateful… I flew down to them and tapped the circle on my left glove again, dropping to the ground after.

"Are you okay?" my voice asked them, though I don't remember saying it. I was lost… Lost in my own mind, in my own confusion and suffering. But they had found me, at least for now. I was with friends, finally.

"We're okay," Tucker answered, shouting above the din. Jazz was leaning heavily on his shoulder. She had a broken leg, and some cuts and bruises, but was otherwise unharmed.

I nodded to them, my strength and resolve slowly returning. "Good," I said, and I meant it.

I looked around at the city, or what was once the city. Our city. But not anymore. This world no longer belonged to us. It was almost over, everything was almost over. The end… The end of what? Of our existence? But no… We wouldn't let that happen. _He_ wouldn't let that happen. He was out there right now, somewhere. Fighting. Always fighting. Fighting for us, the ones he loved. And for them, the ones he didn't. He fought for everyone, and he would never give up. I knew it, Tucker and Jazz knew it. Even his enemies knew it. Although right then, at that moment, he had none. We were all united, all on the same side. Our enemy was extinction. We were fighting against extinction. And against all odds, we were determined to win.

Then suddenly, a great explosion shook the earth, shook the seas, shook the skies. It came from the eastern horizon, we knew. We looked. The sky had turned red, had brightened from the previous black, though not comfortingly so. It glowed crimson – an evil crimson. The color of blood… It was frightening, and we knew what it meant.

It was midnight. It had begun.

I looked at Tucker and Jazz, momentarily reading their thoughts, as they resonated the same word as mine.

_Danny…_

* * *

Okay! And we're rolling! The rest of it isn't written in this weird, first-person, stream-of-consciousness sort of style, just in case you were worried, heh heh (and YES! I already have it all written. So no unplanned hiatuses this time!).

I'll probably post the first real chapter today or tomorrow, since this one isn't much of anything. But after that my speed depends on reception, as usual. So review for me? Pretty please?

See ya soon!

-oMM


	2. October 30

Hi again! Thanks to everybody who read and reviewed yesterday, and as promised here's the first real chapter.

So the way I'm doing this, each chapter is gonna be one day, with the date as the chapter title so it's easy to keep track of where we are in the timeline. This chapter is mainly to establish the setting and explain a bit about the war and what's been going on between the end of the series and my current timeline.

And... action!

* * *

_**-October 30-**_

"Morning, everyone."

At the sound of the voice, Sam looked up suddenly toward the foot of the staircase, noticing everyone else in the room do the same. She smiled upon seeing the person standing there. "You know it's almost five o'clock in the evening, Valerie," she teased, chuckling. "You sleep well?"

"Well enough," Valerie replied as she nodded to Tucker, who waved from where he sat at one of the computers, and walked over to the table where Sam was rifling through some simulation diagrams. "How are things going here?"

"Same as ever, unfortunately," Sam answered somewhat dejectedly. "We haven't heard from the front line in a while, and two of the Intel teams are still out scouting in the Ghost Zone." She tossed the paper she'd been examining to the opposite corner of the table and picked up another. "Your dad said he had something to talk to you about, though. He's over at the security panel, as usual."

"Sure," Valerie offered, stretching and yawning. "Thanks, Sam."

As Valerie strode toward where her father was working, a sudden creaking sound filled the room as the doors of the Ghost Portal swished open. Sam, Valerie, Tucker, and everyone else in the room turned as one once again to see two people, or to be precise one human and one ghost, enter through the Portal and close it behind them. They both looked tired and were breathing heavily.

"Jazz," Sam greeted her as Jazz sat down in a chair against the wall. "What happened?"

Jazz unlatched the Velcro strap on each of her black and white gloves, before removing them and tossing them into the box next to her chair with the words 'Hover Gloves' (a defensive weapon designed by the Fentons to enable flight in normal humans) scrawled across the front. "We were scouting in the North-western Quadrant after a tip we'd heard from a ghost near the enemy base, when we ran into a bunch of wild animals that sort of looked like saber-toothed tigers. We fought them off for a while but there were too many so we ran. Unfortunately we lost track of Team Gamma in the confusion, but as is code, we didn't go back for them. Hopefully they made it out okay, too."

"You lost them?" Sam repeated, growing worried. "Well now that you guys are back safe, we should go and look for them. Maybe they need help."

She started to walk toward the Portal, but Wulf, the other half of Intelligence Team Alpha, stepped in her way, holding out his hand. "Bad idea," he said in his thick Hispanic accent (Tucker and Mikey had been teaching him to speak English over the past few years, and he had made remarkable progress. He was able to understand almost all of what the rest of them were saying at important times and could form full sentences when he needed to. He typically preferred, however, to speak in as few words as possible to get messages across).

"Wulf's right, Sam," Jazz asserted, standing up again. "We don't want to risk the enemy finding our base. Besides, Team Gamma knows what to do. I'm sure they'll be back in no time."

Grumbling, Sam crossed her arms across her chest and sat down heavily on a cold, metal chair at the nearest table. Jazz and Wulf looked at each other before sitting opposite her at the same table, sighing in exhaustion. As Jazz lay her head down on the table, the sound of footsteps from the top of the basement stairs echoed across the room, and a few of the inhabitants turned to look as three new visitors descended into view.

Sam rose to her feet again upon recognizing them. "Danny," she said in relief, smiling and jogging over to him as he, Kwan, and Paulina discarded their weapons and other accessories in their respective bins in the corner.

"Hey," Danny replied, grinning as Sam wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Before she did so, however, he caught a quick glimpse of the distraught expression on her face. "Is something wrong?"

When Sam didn't reply, Jazz stood from her chair once again and Danny looked over to her. "We lost Intel Team Gamma exiting the North-western Quadrant of the Ghost Zone," she answered simply, eyeing Danny warily as she spoke. And just as she'd feared, upon hearing the news, Danny paused for a second before walking straight for the Ghost Portal, his jaw set and a determined look on his face.

When Danny was a few steps from the Portal, Wulf caught up with him from behind, grabbing each of his arms and lifting him off of the ground.

"Let me go, Wulf," he said sternly, though not trying to break free. "I'm gonna go look for them."

"Can't go," Wulf replied in just as stern of a tone, shaking his head vigorously. "Too dangerous. Against code."

"I know, but they could be in trouble. I'm not just gonna—"

Just then, the Portal screeched open and, to everyone's relief, in flew Youngblood and Johnny 13.

"Are you guys okay?" Jazz asked as the Portal doors closed tightly behind the panting pair of ghosts that had just entered and Danny let out a visible sigh of relief. "Wulf and I lost track of you somewhere near that forest. We looked for a few minutes, but we were still being chased so we couldn't stick around for long."

"Yeah, we're fine," Youngblood answered grudgingly, brushing himself off. "Those stupid lion things had us cornered by a cliff side. We managed to fight 'em off eventually and get out, but by that time you guys were long gone."

"We figured you'd made it back safe so we made straight here," Johnny continued, leaning against the wall and straightening his jacket. "Looks like we were right. So nothin' to worry about."

"That's good," Danny said, shaking his head. He then turned his neck to look at Wulf behind him. "Can you put me down now?"

Wulf jumped slightly and smiled sheepishly, before setting Danny safely on the ground. "Sorry," he offered, as Danny grinned and waved a hand in reply.

"Jack Fenton to Control Center," a voice suddenly came over the intercom from the op center. "Status report."

Danny shook his head and looked down in exasperation. His dad just loved to sound official. "Hey, Dad," he replied simply. "Front line… hasn't gotten anywhere." Paulina and Kwan caught his eye from the corner of the room, sending him an inquisitive glance. He jerked his head to the side just barely, silencing them.

"That's too bad," Jack's voice said after a moment's pause. "Unfortunately we don't have anything new for you either. But keep at it! We're bound to make some progress one of these days!" Danny smiled. As immature as his father was, you still had to admire his optimism. "We'll get back to you if anything comes up."

"Oh, and Danny, honey," Maddie's voice sounded a second later. "Don't forget to clean your equipment and put everything in its rightful place. A clean control room is an efficient control room!"

"Yeah, yeah," Danny groaned, a small smile spreading across his face. "Sure thing, Mom." After his parents seemed content with communication for the time being, Danny made his way over to the computer cluster and stood behind Tucker's seat. "Any progress on the new shield?"

"Not really," Tucker answered, spinning his chair to face Danny, a tired expression on his face. "We're trying, but we just can't find a way to improve the current model. But I know there's a breakthrough coming, I can feel it." Tucker grinned, his inner tech geek enjoying the challenge regardless of the apparent lack of an available solution.

"If anyone can do it, Tuck, you can. Like my dad said, keep at it."

"Will do, man."

After that, Danny went next to the security panel where Damon and Valerie Gray were monitoring activity near the base. "How's it going?" he inquired as they turned to greet him.

"Well," Damon began, facing back toward the monitors. "Central security is holding out, though I don't know for how much longer. The shield's getting weaker by the day. It's helped a lot that you guys have been able to keep the ghost army from getting too close, though."

"Yeah…" Danny replied with a frown. "Well Tucker said that he thinks they're close to a breakthrough on the shield. If we can get a new one up I'll feel a lot better about this."

"You and me both, Danny," Damon answered seriously, his eyes scanning the monitors.

After wishing them luck as he did with everyone else, Danny made his way back to the corner near the foot of the stairs where Kwan and Paulina were tidying up the equipment they'd brought back and proceeded to help them.

"Danny," Paulina began after a moment of silence. "Why don't you say something?"

He looked up at her. "What?" he asked, though he knew to what she was referring. At that moment, however, he noticed Sam sneak silently away up the stairs, and became immediately distracted.

"You can't keep making everyone think that—"

"Can you guys finish this?" he said almost as an aside as he stood and walked toward the stairs Sam had just ascended. He heard Kwan and Paulina grumble a reply, but as his mind was elsewhere he didn't think on it for long.

Danny found Sam in the living room, lying on the sofa. Her eyes were closed, but he knew she wasn't asleep. Still, rather than ask her what was wrong, he sat down quietly on the arm of the couch nearest her head and waited until she was ready to talk. Danny knew Sam better than anyone, and one of the things he'd learned over the years was that she wouldn't talk unless she wanted to. So it was usually best to be patient and wait until she started the conversation.

"April thirtieth, two-thousand eight."

Danny looked at Sam, his eyebrows creased in a frown. "What?"

"That's the day this war started," she clarified, opening her eyes and meeting Danny's gaze. "Exactly thirty months ago today. Two and a half years we've been doing this." She fell silent again, her gaze rising to the ceiling.

Danny's eyes dropped as he sighed. "It's been that long already?"

Sam smiled mirthlessly. "Doesn't feel like it, does it? It's amazing how fast time can fly when you're having so much fun." The sarcasm in her voice was almost sad, as she shook her head and sat up. She looked at Danny with serious eyes. "I don't know how much longer I can take this. It's the same thing day in and day out. I just…" Her voice faltered somewhat as she seemed to choke on her words. His expression softening, Danny got up and sat next to her on the couch, putting an arm around her and pulling her into him. She took a deep breath as she leaned her head on his shoulder. "I know it's childish, but I just want things to go back to the way they used to be. We're kids, you know? We're supposed to be enjoying these years, hanging out, having fun… Not fighting for our lives. It's just so… wrong."

"I know," Danny agreed, having thought the same thing countless times over the past two and a half years. He was sick of this war. They all were. But try as they might there seemed to be nothing they could do to stop it. All they could do was watch as it slowly contributed to the increasing destruction of all of their lives. Every chance he got he tried so hard to think of a way to stop what was happening, any possible method of making peace with the opposing ghost army. But whatever he tried always failed. He hated the war, the fighting, the way it affected everyone, the way they were all forced to grow up so fast and to take on so much responsibility. He hated the way they lived in constant fear – fear of losing the war, fear of death. But most of all, he hated the fact that he was powerless to do anything for the people who'd trusted him all this time. They all had followed his lead, believed in him, and there was nothing he could do to ease their suffering. "But it's like my dad said. If we just keep at it, we've gotta find a way to end this someday."

A small smile appeared on Sam's face. "He's been saying that for over two years." Danny smiled back as Sam laughed and stifled a yawn.

"Hey, you should get some sleep. There's not much going on right now, so it's a good time to take a rest." He squeezed Sam's shoulder. "You need it."

Yawning again, she sat up straight and wrapped her arms around Danny, who returned the embrace. "You're right. I'll see you in a few hours." With an encouraging smile, she rose from the couch and made her way up the stairs without another word.

After she'd gone, Danny stood as well and strode lazily to the window, leaning his shoulder against the cold glass and staring out at the outside world. The sky was gray, as it had been for as long as he could remember anymore. Rainless, but always gray. It cast a dull light on the streets and houses below. Nothing glowed with sunlight like it used to, and only pale shadows provided cover from the darkness. It looked as though the world itself was sad, depressed that this war had gone on for so long and taken so much life out of everything and everyone.

The last remaining ghost shield in commission still stood around Fenton Works, acting as a last defense if any of the opposing army were to get too close. It wrapped around the building on all sides, so that when you looked out a window it was as if you were watching the gray world through a thin, green film. A film that would flicker every so often, growing more and more feeble with age. It was obvious by looking at it – it wasn't going to last for long. And when it was gone, there would be no final defense. Not to mention the fact that it was getting increasingly more difficult to keep the ghost army back. They had certain advantages over the living that made fighting them an often impossible task. Humans tired in time after continuous battle, ghosts took a lot longer to wear out. Humans needed food, water, and sleep. Ghosts required none of these things. And obstacles like fatigue and hunger were starting to become common among the human army with each passing week. Danny hadn't said anything to anyone, but their front line had been pushed back another few yards that day. They were losing ground, and fast. He wasn't sure how much longer they could keep the opposing side back. If they didn't get a new shield up soon, there would be no way to protect their main base. And if the base was captured, the war was over.

"Danny?" a voice came from behind him, causing him to jump and jerk away from the window.

"Mom," he said with a sigh upon seeing her standing below the chute to the op center. As she walked toward him, he relaxed and leaned back against the window again.

"Is something wrong?" she asked with concern upon seeing his tired expression. "Other than the obvious," she added with a small smile.

After a moment of indecision, Danny told his mother about the battle today, how they'd lost even more ground, and about his reservations of whether or not they'd be able to hold on for long.

"I'm sorry for not saying anything sooner," he apologized, glancing out the window and watching the dark clouds move sluggishly by. "But I didn't want people to get more worried. I know it's immature, but I don't want them to lose hope. Even if that means I can't always be completely honest with them."

"No, I think you're right," Maddie agreed after a moment, placing a hand on her son's shoulder. "If people start to get anxious, they won't be able to keep at it. And the last thing we need now is for people to give up." She also turned to look out the window, her gaze distant, as if staring at some far-off location that no one else could see. "We've made it this far on guts, nerve, and determination. And I intend to stick with it until we find a way to end this war." Danny smiled, knowing his mother was right. Then suddenly she turned to face him again, the distant look in her eyes immediately replaced by the same motherly gaze he'd seen so many times before. "But in the meantime, you should try and sleep a little. It's getting dark, and I know you've been fighting for almost five days straight."

"I can't," Danny started, taking a step back and shaking his head. "I have to stay—"

"You're not needed right now, Danny. And you need your rest, too. So come on, upstairs."

After realizing it was useless arguing with a concerned mother, he gave in and said goodnight to her, before disappearing up the stairs and into the dark hallway.

-0-0-0-0-0-

The walls and windows of the dark house did little to silence the ever-present sounds of war coming from all over the city. As Danny lay awake in the bed he used to sleep in night after night, his ears were filled with shouts, explosions, ecto-gunfire, and a whole mess of other unidentifiable noises. The din was muffled by the wall of brick between him and the outside world, but the resulting dull roar only served to make the sonance more ominous. It wasn't a soundtrack one could easily fall asleep to. Although, Danny noticed, that didn't seem to be a problem for Mikey, who was currently snoring loudly from his place on the floor a few feet from the bed. Not that this angered him at all. It was common for multiple people to sleep in the same room at the same time. After all, each of the rooms in his house and a lot of others now served as resting areas for large groups of people. There were a number of such homes around the city which many families shared.

While something every human needs to survive, sleep was nothing like the routine it once had been for the people of Amity Park, and likely the rest of the world as well. The fighting never stopped, which meant that some people had to be awake to fight it at all times. That was why so many people often shared one bedroom: it was rare for more than two or three people to use it at one time.

Danny, however, didn't like to sleep. Because he was half-ghost, he didn't tire as quickly or as often as other humans, so he would often stay up and fight for as long as he could. The longest he'd gone without sleep since the start of the war, he remembered, was ten days. But though he didn't like to accept it, part of him was still human. And that part needed rest, so sooner or later he would have to get some sleep. But going to bed was something he hated more than anything else lately, because he never knew what would happen while he was asleep. He couldn't possibly know what would be different when he woke up, or if he would wake up at all. It was the helplessness that came with sleep of which he was truly afraid. Sometimes, when he'd lie awake at night, listening to the symphony of sounds outside those walls, he wouldn't be able to help but think that maybe things would be easier if he were more than just half ghost. He wouldn't need things like sleep, and would be able to keep on fighting and protecting everyone. But that thought would never last long. His rational side would soon kick in and remind him that the bad of that situation would likely outweigh the good. It wasn't something he should ever even consider.

A short while later, when sleep had almost overcome him, a particularly loud snore from the soundly sleeping Mikey made Danny jump violently and sit up straight in bed. The dim green glow from the ghost shield outside the window cast eerie shadows across the dark walls of the bedroom. He could see Mikey lying on the floor, his head at least three feet from his pillow and his entire left side protruding from his sleeping bag. Danny smiled inwardly and shook his head at the sight, before turning to glance out the window at the dark, cloudy sky. He wanted more than anything to fly out to the battle right then and help, but his aching body held him back. If he went out there now, he would probably only end up getting himself hurt, and maybe others as well. As he lay his head back down against the soft pillow, a yawn escaping his lips, he tried to clear his mind of all the worries that had taken firm root in it since the war had begun. As Sam had said earlier that day, it had been exactly two and a half years they'd been fighting in the Immortal War. Two and a half years of suffering, of turmoil, of fear and anger, of sadness and hate. Two and a half years of struggling for their lives, of hoping and praying each and every day that that day wouldn't be their last. He was tired of it. They were all tired of it. And it was time for something to change.

* * *

So there you have it. Seems like life's gotten pretty tough, huh? Well if you think that's bad, wait and see what's gonna happen in the next week, heh heh... (And if you're wondering where the prologue fits in, you'll have to wait a bit for that. You'll see eventually, though, heh heh)

I'll probably update this once a week or so, depending on the kind of reception it gets. As always, let me know what you think and I'll update faster!

Later, gators!

-oMM


	3. October 31

Hey there! Thanks to all readers/reviewers, as always. Here's chapter 2!

* * *

_**-October 31-**_

"Dash! To the middle left flank! Help Paulina!"

Dash looked up from the ghost he had just blasted backward and out of sight and offered Danny a nod to show that his order had been understood, before turning and rushing through the crowd to his left.

"I don't think you can afford not to pay attention, here, kid," Ember growled at the half-ghost as she struck a chord on her ethereal guitar, sending a roaring wave of glowing cerulean flames spreading from it. Danny dodged to his left, firing a shining ecto-beam of his own at her, which she deflected seconds before it would have made destructive contact with the neck of her guitar.

"Oh yeah?" he replied, sounding half-interested, his eyes still scanning the battlefield around him. "Well then how come you haven't—Valerie! Watch the group to your left!" Watching to make sure Valerie followed his order, Danny threw up an ecto-shield instinctively as a gust of howling wind crashed toward him.

"Don't bother, Ember," Vortex began between heaving breaths. "This way we have a better chance of catching him off guard."

"Hah," Danny mocked, shooting forward and throwing a few kicks at Vortex while aerially dodging another attack from Ember. "Great chance of that."

"Hmph," Ember scowled, rotating one of the tuning wheels on her glowing guitar. "We'll see about that." She strummed another sonorous chord and blue ropes began to sprout from the body of the guitar. As they snaked toward Danny, he jerked to his right and flew around behind Ember, grabbing the back of her guitar strap and using it as leverage to swing her over his head and send her flying backward toward the ghost army with an angry snarl. He then turned back to Vortex, who was swaying back and forth in annoyance.

"So where's your great and mighty leader?" the half-ghost jibed, floating on his side in a bored manner, eliciting a small tornado to begin to take form around Vortex. "Too scared to come out and join his minions on the battlefield? Or does he just not care enough about his own fighters to help them out?"

"That is enough!" The voice that cut Danny off hadn't come from Vortex, however, who looked just as surprised as his half-human opponent. Danny wheeled around just in time to see the Fright Knight barreling toward him, violet flames extruding from beneath his armor. He barely had time to dodge sideways as the Knight aimed a fiery blast straight ahead, which instead struck only air, dissipating almost instantly. "I will not have you saying such vile and disrespectful things about the great Pariah Dark! Our leader is a being who knows no fear and holds much compassion for his numerous armies! It is _you _who is unfit to do battle with _him_!"

"Yeah, yeah," Danny scoffed off-handedly. "I'll believe that when I see him out here on the battlefield." As the half-ghost flew forward and landed a kick on the Knight's right side, Vortex was intercepted by Kwan and a few members of his battalion. Seeing that things around him seemed to be going smoothly, or at least as smoothly as he could hope, Danny allowed himself to focus more attention on his own battle.

-0-0-0-0-0-

October 31st. Halloween. Not that holidays like this were really celebrated anymore, Sam couldn't help but think as she continued to fight off the onslaught of kicks and punches being thrown at her from Technus. Years ago, on Halloween, kids would spend the entire day fixing their costumes, talking with one another about what they were dressing as, and making plans for the ultimate trick-or-treating experience. Halloween used to be a time of fun, a time of games, pranks, haunted houses, and of course – candy. But not anymore. Now, October 31st was just another day of the year, just like all the others. After all, what was there to separate it from any other day? December 25th, July 4th, February 14th, March 17th– they were all just dates nowadays. There was nothing to celebrate, anyway. Even birthdays were barely an occasion, just more and more proof of the ever-growing length of time the Immortal War had been going on. And like many people she knew, Sam didn't want it to continue that way. She wanted the holidays back. She wanted celebration back, happiness, a reason for joy. She had never thought she would have to live in a world without holidays, but now that she was, she found she missed each one of them more than anything.

"Girl? Are you listening?" Technus's voice suddenly broke through Sam's thoughts. She turned to see him folding his arms in apparent annoyance, and realized she hadn't been paying him any attention for a few minutes now – not that she felt bad at all, really.

"Sorry, what were you saying?"

Technus seemed to seethe with anger as she offered a smile in mock apology. "Oh, never mind. This won't drag on much longer anyway." He pulled a small disc out from a compartment in the arm of his suit, inserting it instead into a similarly-sized slot in his chest. Instantly green lines of binary code began to spread across the outer layer of his gear, and he seemed to resonate with a new power. Sam looked on in slight apprehension as he held up an arm, which was now glowing with a powerful blue intensity. With a smirk he extended the arm in one fluid motion, sending a crackling surge of energy directly at his opponent, whose eyes widened as she twisted to her left to avoid being hit. She managed to miss the brunt of the blast, but felt the fabric of her right sleeve singe as it passed dangerously close. Technus, on the other hand, was looking very pleased with himself. "Well, what do you know, it actually worked," he mused in a congratulatory and slightly surprised tone.

_Yeesh…_ Sam mentally warned herself. _I'll have to be more careful…_ She also couldn't suppress the unfortunate realization that the ghost army was continuing to get stronger with each passing day, while the human side on the other hand was becoming more and more fatigued with time. It wasn't something she wanted to admit, but it was true. Even she was finding that she could no longer fight with quite as much vigor as she used to. All she wanted was for this war to end, but the way things were going, it wasn't looking good.

All of a sudden, she heard a familiar shout, followed by a hard _thud_ and a scraping sound. She turned to her left to see Danny on the ground a few feet away, where he'd apparently just collided hard with the street. A moment of indecision struck Sam, as concern swept over her and she wanted to run toward him, but not a second later, he was on his feet again, shaking his head and setting his jaw. Momentarily he glanced to his right, his eyes locking with Sam's through the crowd around them. He must have seen the worry in her gaze, because he allowed his expression to soften, a confident grin sliding across it. He nodded his head once, before leaping into the air and heading back toward whatever battle he'd been fighting.

After their silent exchange, Sam found herself filled with a renewed feeling of confidence. Like she'd admitted, the human army was getting tired. But tired as they got, they never gave up fighting. And Danny was a perfect example of that. No matter how many times he got knocked down, he always got right back up again, just as he'd done seconds ago. And if he could do it, so could she.

She turned back to Technus, her gaze firm and unrelenting. Charging her ecto-gun, a new vigor having returned to her limbs, she charged forward, just as he was readying another energy blast.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Meanwhile, Danny had returned to his fight with the Fright Knight, who seemed to be throwing everything he had at the half-ghost before him. Danny had found himself increasingly able to pay less and less attention to the surrounding battles, requiring more and more spent on his own.

Suddenly, a sharp _beep beep beep_ broke their exchange of blows, and the Knight glided back a few feet and pressed a button on his right forearm. "Report," he said into it as Danny glared at him, a scowl on his face. "It's finished? Right, I'm on my way back." He lowered his arm and turned back to his opponent. "Sorry to hit and run, but I'm needed elsewhere." Then without another word, he turned and sped off into the crowd, back toward the center of the ghost army.

"Hey!" Danny shouted in annoyance, shooting after him. He soon lost sight of the Knight, however, for as soon as he had crossed into opposing territory every ghost nearby took the chance to attack him and he was regrettably forced back over to his side, muttering angrily. _Oh, well,_ he told himself. _There're plenty of other ghosts here who could use a good kick in the ecto-tail._

Just then a buzzing sound emitted from his radio watch. He held the button on the side of it and a holographic image rose from its surface, showing the face of his sister. "What's up?" he asked in a business-like tone.

"Intelligence Team Beta just returned from a scout of the Ghost Zone," she answered in the same tone of slight urgency. "They've got some news I think you need to hear."

"Right," her brother nodded in understanding. "I'll be right there." With that he released the button and the image faded. Leaping into the air again, a thought hit him, and instead of flying off toward base, he sped off instead to his right, stopping by where Sam and five others were pushing Technus back across the front line. He pulled her aside after making sure the others would be successful alone. "Hey, just heard from Jazz. She said Team Beta's come back with some important news from the Ghost Zone. You've been out here longer than I have today. You could use a break." She raised an eyebrow at him, and he offered a small smile in return. "Come back with me?"

After a moment, her look of protest faded. "Maybe you're right," she sighed in defeat, admitting that she did feel a bit tired, and she really could use a break. Besides, it looked as though things were pretty well-handled here, at least for a while.

As the two glided into the air and turned away from the front line (Sam via Hover Gloves), a voice suddenly stopped them.

"And where are you going, boy?"

Danny and Sam turned to see Pariah Dark, leader of the ghost army, flying toward them from the direction of the ghosts' base, flanked by the Fright Knight and two other nameless guards.

"I heard," the Ghost King continued in a snide voice, coming to a halt a few feet from where Danny and Sam were floating, "that someone has been questioning my leadership of this army."

"Well since you haven't had the guts to show your face around here recently," Danny explained matter-of-factly, "naturally I just assumed you were hiding somewhere."

"Hiding?" Pariah scoffed. "Hardly. I was in fact working day and night on a weapon with which to finally end this ridiculous war. And now that it is finished, I've come to use it myself." He glided to the side to reveal a mid-sized cannon behind him, being held by the two guards who had accompanied him. "This cannon uses a modified version of the very first ecto-converter which your parents were kind enough to invent years ago." Danny wondered briefly where they had attained said ecto-converter, as the last he had seen it, it had been in the hands of Vlad Masters, who disappeared following the asteroid incident in August 2007 – over three years ago. "It's capable of firing blasts with much more strength than your previous ecto-cannons, depending of course on the power level of its user. But the real advantages of this weapon," the Ghost King continued through an evil sneer, "are that it can harm both humans and ghosts, so even the traitors who have defected to your side are not safe from it, and thanks to your ecto-converter, it can only be used by ghosts. Not to mention the unlimited power supply." He gestured around him at his numerous forces – or, to him, numerous batteries with the potential to power his machine. "Soon every ghost will be armed with one of these weapons, and you _humans'_ days will be numbered."

"What's the matter, Dark?" Danny scoffed, his tone light but his eyes stern as he eyed the cannon warily. "Afraid you can't win without resorting to drastic measures? Can't say I don't agree, honestly. You should see the state your army's in out here, I'm surprised they haven't—" He broke off suddenly as Pariah's one visible eye flashed angrily and in a swift movement he aimed the cannon and fired. Danny reached over and shoved Sam to the side as a large orb of pale red energy collided with him, heaving him to the ground with a resounding _boom_.

"_Danny!_" Sam shouted at once, ignoring the Ghost King's laughter. She dropped from the air and dashed to Danny's side as he pulled himself up onto his elbows with a groan.

"Ugh… Not a normal ecto-blast…" he mused almost to himself. His fingers massaged the burn on his chest with rough stiffness and his gaze shifted to meet Sam's. "This could be bad." A second blast sounded and both teens raised their heads to hear a chorus of screams break the air. Sam breathed in sharply and Danny's expression turned instantly grave. "He's _not_…" he growled through gritted teeth, jumping to his feet and setting his jaw before leaping into the air, Sam smacking the back of her right glove and hurrying to follow.

Just as they'd feared, Pariah Dark had set his sights on the human army and was firing his weapon into the crowd. It appeared to require time to re-heat between shots, but not enough to make a difference. Danny snarled as he noticed a team of people leap out of the way, two of them not making it in time, before jerking forward, held back only by Sam's sudden and tight grip on his arm.

"I know this sucks, Danny, but you have to get back to base," she insisted in a level voice, glaring at him with stern eyes. He didn't respond, only shook his head before allowing his arm to phase harmlessly through her fingers. She clucked her tongue in frustration and grumbled unintelligibly as he sped toward the Ghost King, green fire in his eyes.

"Hey!" he shouted at Pariah once he broke above the din. The ghost commander turned with a smirk, eyebrows rising at the look of fury on the half-ghost's face.

"Back for a second demonstration?" Pariah suggested icily. "Or did you want a better view of how well it works on crowds?" He laughed and aimed at the human army again, but Danny growled in anger and darted toward him, charging a blast in his right fist and smashing it against the barrel of the cannon before Pariah could pull the release. The weapon flew from the Ghost King's hands and disappeared from sight. Pariah let out a furious snarl and yanked his sword from its scabbard. He swung it sharply at Danny, who spun to the side and noticed with satisfaction that all humor had disappeared from the ghost's scarred face.

"With _you_ out of the way," Pariah barked in a gruff voice as he struck blow after blow at his evasive opponent, "your side stands no chance against us!" He fired a bright ecto-blast and Danny raised a shield just in time to catch it, but it flickered out as the ghostly sword sliced his left arm, breaking his concentration. He stumbled back and Pariah raised his sword arm, dark eye gleaming, when an ecto-ray suddenly collided with the front of the Ghost King's armor, knocking him back. Danny was unsurprised when Sam appeared at his side, gun barrel emitting a faint green smoke.

"I've got this," he insisted through gritted teeth.

Sam snorted. "Like hell you do," she replied, her eyes flitting to the cut on his arm, which had begun to ooze familiar green goo. "Come on, we're a team," she added in a softer voice, eliciting a small half-smile from her half-ghost friend.

His smile vanished, however, the second Pariah returned and launched himself at Sam, who dodged his attack with wide eyes. She spun around him in the air and kicked at his sword arm, knocking his next blow away from her. He recovered instantly and fired a blazing, red ecto-blast in her direction. Danny sped to her side and threw up a shield to block the attack. It shattered on impact, sending the two teens flying in opposite directions. Pariah flew at Sam and made to snatch her out of the air, but she ducked and fired her weapon. The ray collided with a crimson energy shield, before Pariah thrust out his arm and the shield sprang forward, knocking into Sam with such force that she fell from the air with a surprised shout.

"Sam!" Danny called her name, eyes frantic. He set his jaw and quickly formed a spiked shard of ice, hurling it at the Ghost King. It collided with the side of his head and dislodged his cracked helmet. Pariah screamed with rage and leapt forward, his gloved fingers stretching and closing themselves tightly around Danny's neck.

"Another advantage we ghosts have over you _humans_," Pariah spat angrily. "We have no need to breathe." The half-ghost gripped Pariah's arm with both hands and tried to yank it away, but the hold only tightened, squeezing his windpipe and making him gasp for breath. "Oh, I've waited for this…" the Ghost King mused, eye glinting in morbid excitement. He raised his sword and pointed it at the center of Danny's chest. As he braced his arm to strike, Danny tensed the muscles in his neck and swung his legs upward, landing a kick on Pariah's sword arm and knocking his blade just barely off-course. It sliced into Danny's right side, a strained yell escaping his mouth as he felt the ghostly steel lodge itself between his ribs.

Ignoring the pain snaking across his body and black spots dotting his vision, Danny braced his right hand and charged a shining green plasma blast, which he thrust forward into his captor's face. Pariah howled and finally his grip on Danny's throat vanished as he was thrown backward, his sword wrenching painfully from the half-ghost's body and eliciting another strangled scream. He clamped a hand over the wound but already he could feel the cold soak of ectoplasm flowing from beneath his grip. He raised his eyes, breathing heavily to fill the deficit of air in his lungs.

Pariah was glaring at him from a few yards away, grinding his teeth and looking livid. "One day soon, Phantom," he growled in a low voice, "you _will_ fall. And like always, your army will be close behind you." With a sweep of his cloak, he spun in the air and fled the scene.

With the imminent threat past, Danny allowed his muscles to relax, dropping to the ground amid the fighting below him. _Guess there's a reason he's their leader,_ he thought bitterly as his body changed unbidden back to human form, his knees hitting the ground hard.

"Danny!" a voice called from somewhere off to his right. "Danny!" He turned to see Sam push her way through the crowd, eyes widening when she spotted him. She was at his side in seconds. "What happened? Where's Pariah?"

"He's gone," Danny answered shortly, his voice hoarse from the pressure on his throat. "Ran off. Coward." Sam shook her head with an exasperated sigh, and Danny noticed the brightly-colored bruise above her left eye. "Hey," he said, reaching toward her head with a frown. "You okay?"

She snatched his hand out of the air and fixed him with a pointed look, but he saw the obvious worry behind her glare. "I'm fine, Danny. It's you we should be talking about." Danny grimaced, his left hand tightening over the wound in his side. Now that he was human, he could fell blood escaping through his fingers and mingling with the ectoplasm on his shirt. "Base," Sam commanded, pulling Danny's free arm around her shoulders and heaving him to his feet. "Now."

-0-0-0-0-0-

"I told you, I'm _fine_," Danny insisted as Sam and Jazz forced him into a bed in the makeshift medical center that had been constructed behind Fenton Works.

"Will you cut it out, Danny?" Sam begged, sounding exasperated. "You're _not_ fine. You're hurt. Now just shut up and let us help you." Danny grumbled an unintelligible reply as she helped him ease his shirt off over his head and Jazz disappeared into the supply cabinet, returning seconds later with a thick roll of gauze and some antiseptic wipes.

As she cleaned the cut and wound the gauze around her brother's torso, Jazz glanced at Sam and asked, "What happened, anyway?"

"Pariah finally showed his face," Sam answered, sounding bitter. She then proceeded to explain to Jazz about the Ghost King's new weapon, and his intentions for its use in the future. Unsurprisingly, Jazz was just as distressed by this news and Danny and Sam had been.

"Wait," Danny said suddenly, sitting up straight and doing his best to ignore the dagger of pain that stabbed at his ribs. "Team Beta. You said they had news for me."

Jazz looked startled and bit her lip. "Right," she agreed, not looking at him. "They should probably explain it themselves." As she left to retrieve her operatives, Sam turned to Danny and fixed him with a look somewhere between wary and disapproving.

"What?" he asked, raising his eyebrows defensively.

"Nothing," she answered in a tone that meant it was certainly not nothing.

"This is a war, Sam," Danny told her matter-of-factly. "People get hurt. It happens."

"I know that," she countered, eyes flashing. She hesitated briefly, before asking in a quieter voice, "Do you?"

He stared at her blankly. "What?"

"You want to protect everyone, I know," she explained, eyes downcast. "But… you just can't. You can't, Danny. And I guess I'm just scared that one of these days you'll try too hard."

Danny bit his lip, avoiding her eyes. "I…" He didn't know what to say. What could he say? Could he tell her he'd stop looking out for everyone? Could he tell her he'd be more careful? Could he tell her his safety didn't matter, as long as his friends were safe? He felt like no matter what argument he made, it wouldn't be right – wouldn't be enough. "I'm sorry," was all he could say. But did he mean it? Even he wasn't sure.

Sam laughed mirthlessly, shaking her head. "No, you're not," she observed, a fond smile on her face. "Idiot." She gave his arm a weak shove, and he grinned almost sheepishly in response.

Just then the curtain hanging over the doorway was pulled aside as Jazz re-entered, followed by Frostbite and Amorpho. Behind them trailed Tucker and Valerie, both of whom glanced Sam and Danny over with concern.

"How you feeling, man?" Tucker asked carefully, eyeing the wound in Danny's side.

"I'm fine," the half-ghost assured his friend, sitting up straight and wincing slightly. "What's the news?"

"Well, we've got good news and bad news," Amorpho offered, folding his fingers together. "The good news is, we found an entrance to the enemy base through the Ghost Zone." Danny's ears perked up at his words. An entrance to the ghost army's base of operations was something Jazz's Intel team had been searching out for quite some time. Before he could respond, Amorpho went on, "As for the bad news, well… I was able to disguise myself as one of them and sneak into the base to get a look around. I, uh… saw them bringing in a prisoner. A human prisoner. That teacher you guys used to have, the out of shape one."

"_Lancer?_" Danny said, mouth dropping open. "_How?_"

"We aren't sure," Frostbite answered, scratching his head with his crystalline arm. "But as far as we know, he's still alive."

With a growl, Danny pulled himself forward and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "I'm going after—"

"No!" shouted at least four voices at once, startling Danny into submission.

"You really shouldn't, Danny," Jazz said, at the same time Tucker offered, "You don't look so good," and Sam grumbled, "Get _back_ in that bed, idiot."

"Okay, okay! Sheesh…" Danny said, sitting back against the pillows with a defeated huff. _Maybe I can sneak off after they leave…_ he thought silently.

"And don't even think we're leaving you alone so you can sneak off," Sam warned him, as if reading his mind. "I'm worried too, but you know the code. We can't." Danny glared at her and opened his mouth to retort when Amorpho spoke up again.

"That's, uh… not all," the faceless ghost said carefully, drawing the crowd's gaze. "I infiltrated as far in as I could without arousing suspicion. You won't believe what I found." He exchanged a glance with Frostbite as Danny raised his eyebrows in inquiry, a twisting feeling of dread beginning to form in the pit of his stomach. "The ghosts are developing their own version of your parents' ghost shield, which it looks like they're calling the Anti-Shield. In theory, it cancels out the effect of the current model of ghost shield and allows its wearer to pass right through. Just like a human."

Sam sucked in a short gasp and Danny's throat tightened in fear. "So if they reach us," he wondered aloud, "it's over." Amorpho nodded slowly. "Oh, man… Tucker—"

"Way ahead of you, Danny," Tucker answered instantly. "I'm doing everything I can to develop a newer, more powerful shield. Problem is, it's gonna need a variant core molecular makeup if we don't want this Ant-Shield to recognize and scramble it. I'm switching up my test models and introducing new elemental level combinations of ectoplasmic radiation, hopefully something clicks." He shook his head, looking frustrated but clearly trying to hide it. "We're close to a breakthrough, I can feel it."

Danny nodded gravely. "Better get to work then," he said, forcing a smile and trying to sound hopeful. Tucker responded with an expression that mirrored his own, before excusing himself and returning to the lab.

"You should get some rest," Jazz told her brother as she ushered the remaining guests out of the room and back into the house. "Sam, will you—?"

"Of course," Sam answered, seating herself on the edge of Danny's bed and giving Jazz a reassuring smile. "I'm not going anywhere." Jazz nodded and left them alone.

Ordinarily, the idea of being watched would have angered the half-ghost, but at the moment his mind was too preoccupied to care too much. "This is bad," he said wearily, leaning his head back against the pillows and closing his eyes.

"I know," Sam agreed in a quiet voice, shifting her weight and taking his hand in both of hers. "But we have to trust Tucker. We have to believe that everything will work out. …It's all we can do."

"That," Danny grimaced as the muscles in his side tightened painfully, "and keep fighting. Until the shield's ready, it's up to us to keep the ghosts away from our base." He raised tired eyes to lock his gaze with Sam's. "No matter what it takes."

Her jaw tightened and it looked for a moment like she would argue, but then she sighed and cast her eyes downward. "You're right," she finally whispered. "I hate it, but you're right. If they take this place the war is over. We lose. We… We can't let that happen. Not after all this time."

Danny smiled and squeezed her hand, his heavy eyelids sliding closed again. As he felt her lie down beside him, resting her head against his shoulder and releasing her breath in a weary sigh, he listened to the ever-present sounds of war from outside the walls of curtain around the medical center, knowing that the people out there were giving everything they had to the fight. He found himself hoping harder than he ever had before that it would be enough.

* * *

Okay! Next chapter is when the main plot starts. Review for me, pretty please?

See y'all soon!

-oMM


	4. November 1

Hey there! Time for the action to start! Mwahahahaha...

* * *

_**-November 1-**_

A few minutes after midnight, Danny woke with a start.

He sat up and shot a glance at the clock beside the bed to learn the time, before sitting very still and looking around the dark room, an intense feeling of foreboding growing inside him. Something wasn't right.

"Danny?" Sam said groggily, propping herself up on her elbows after being stirred awake by his movement.

"Shh!" he hissed, listening hard to the air around him. "You hear that?"

Sam sat up slowly and glanced around, before fixing him with a puzzled look. "I don't hear anything." Danny stared at her in response, and her eyes widened in sudden realization. It was silent. No shouts, screams, gunfire, footsteps, _nothing_. It was as if the battle outside had frozen still. The noises had been constant for so long now, it was eerie and strange to hear nothing at all.

"Come on," Danny said, yanking back the blanket that covered them and rising from the bed. As his muscles stretched and pulled at the scab that was forming over the wound in his side, he grunted and bent forward, taking a moment to let the pain subside. Sam shot him a concerned glance, but he met her eyes and shook his head as the feeling passed, before leading the way into the house.

When they reached the op center, they found Jack and Maddie accompanied by Jazz and Tucker, all of whom were huddled around a computer panel talking hurriedly. "What's going on?" Danny asked loudly, getting their attention. Immediately his mother strode across the room to ask if he was feeling better, to which he insisted he was fine. "Something's up," he said, knowing by the looks on their faces that it was true.

"It's the ghosts," Tucker explained, a sort of dazed confusion in his eyes. "They just… disappeared."

"What?" said Sam. "What do you mean, 'disappeared'?"

"I mean 'disappeared'," Tucker replied, glancing at the radar on the computer board before him and frowning with wide eyes. "Vanished, left, I don't know. But they're gone. It's like they all retreated somewhere beyond our scope sensors."

"It happened right at midnight," Jack pointed out as Sam and Danny strode to the window.

"You don't think their Anti-Shield is finished, do you?" Jazz asked worriedly.

"I hope not…" Tucker said. "If that's the case, we're in trouble. Maybe they just… gave up?" he added with an air of forced optimism.

"I don't know what caused this," Maddie wondered, placing her hands on Danny's shoulders almost protectively, "but something just isn't right here. We need to come up with a plan of action soon before—" She broke off when a loud beeping sound cut the air, coming from one of the control panels.

"Incoming communication," Jack noted as he wheeled his chair over to the flashing red light. He pressed a button and said into the speaker, "Fenton Works, Operations Base 001. This is Jack Fenton."

"I have a message for Phantom," came the reply. It was scratchy and vaguely robotic due to the wavering connection, but the voice was unmistakable. It was the Ghost King.

"What do you want, Dark?" Danny asked warily after stepping up to the communication module, the others exchanging nervous glances and wondering why the leader of the opposing army would be calling them.

When Pariah spoke again, he sounded as though he hated every word he was saying. "I was told to instruct you to come to the front line."

"You were 'told'?" Danny repeated, not missing the word.

"That is all," Pariah said stonily. A second beep sounded and the words _'Communication terminated'_ flashed on the screen.

"That doesn't sound good…" Tucker observed, scratching the back of his neck.

Maddie frowned. "Who could he be taking orders from?"

"I don't know," Danny said, "but he didn't sound happy about it." He stood up straight and changed quickly and wordlessly to his ghost form, already feeling his injuries start to heal at a faster rate.

Sam and Tucker exchanged a glance and made for the box of Hover Gloves by the door simultaneously. "We're coming with you," Sam explained unnecessarily.

Maddie looked at her son like she wanted nothing more than to send him to his room, but instead she said, "Be careful. All of you."

"Don't worry, Mom," Danny reassured her with a smile, before leading the way out onto the roof and into the air.

When they reached the front line, they saw that it was true – the ghost army had disappeared. The humans hadn't moved from their positions, and were talking anxiously amongst themselves and looking around warily, as if waiting for something unexpected to happen. Danny was glad they hadn't tried to invade the ghosts' territory, fearing what might have happened if they had, but the dread in his stomach swept away the momentary relief faster than it had appeared.

"So… now what?" Tucker asked, glancing back and forth with narrowed eyes. "There's no one here."

"Maybe they didn't think you'd come?" Sam suggested, though her eyes were trained in the direction they knew their opponents' base to be.

"Hey!" Danny called, gliding forward a few feet and peering through the darkness. "What kind of host doesn't show his face at his own party?"

After a brief moment of silence, an unfamiliar voice replied icily, "Perhaps the kind that dislikes insolent guests."

Danny, Sam, and Tucker all flinched in surprise as a figure seemed to materialize from the darkness around it. One look told them he was a ghost, but at the same time he seemed different – strange. He was dressed all in white, but the edges of his cloak and cape seemed to be decaying. His face was almost as pale as his clothing, and stood in stark contrast to the thick, onyx crown on his head. A black quiver was slung across his back, and in his hand was a bow that looked to be made of swirling red and black dust, its colors grainy and constantly shifting. He was seated astride a ghostly, stark-white horse with heavy, black eyes that seemed to gleam with their own darkness.

"Are you the leader of the human army?" the ghost asked in a voice so hollow it echoed in the air around him, sending chills down the spines of everyone within earshot. It was both a whisper and a scream at the same time, and one of the most horrible sounds Danny had ever heard.

"That's me," he answered, trying to keep his voice level. Something about this ghost made him very uneasy, but he was determined not to show it.

"Good," the ghost answered. "I wanted to meet the other being responsible for what I am about to start."

"Who are you?" Danny demanded, folding his arms across his chest and trying not to think too much about what this guy was 'about to start.'

"I am Crithstain," he replied, his expression still as stone, ruby eyes shining. "The ghost army is now under my command. By the laws of life and death, they belong to me." He pulled the reins on his horse, and the creature brayed loudly and swung its head, turning away from them. "I came to tell you that this war has gone on long enough, and now that I've come your days are numbered. All will return to dust."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Danny shouted as the ghost began to leave. "Where did you come from? What are you doing here?" But the ghost called Crithstain paid no attention. Frustrated and frantic for answers to the cryptic warnings, Danny flew forward and called after him, "Hey! You're just gonna show up for five minutes and run away? Why not stick around? …_Hey!_"

Then suddenly, the ghost turned in his saddle and knocked an arrow so fast, his movements were almost a blur. As the arrow loosed, Danny jumped in surprise and jerked to the side reflexively, just in time for the point to whip harmlessly past him.

"You're brave," Crithstain said, eyeing Danny with what looked like the tiniest hint of interest on his otherwise expressionless face. "It will be a good fight."

Just when Danny was about to ask again where the ghost had come from, Tucker shouted urgently, "Danny, watch out!" The half-ghost spun around and barely caught sight of the red-and-black blur before something sharp lodged itself firmly in his right shoulder, causing him to yell in pain and hunch over. He glanced down to see the feathered shaft of Crithstain's arrow protruding resolutely from his skin. _How did it do that? _he wondered absently. With an angry growl, he twisted around just as Crithstain disappeared from sight.

"That was weird…" Tucker observed as he and Sam moved in and hovered close to Danny, whose eyes were still locked in the direction the ghost had gone.

Sam moved around to get a closer look at the arrow in Danny's shoulder. "Are you—?"

"I'm fine," he cut her off, trying not to sound as irritated as he felt. He took a deep breath and yanked the arrow out of his body, grinding his teeth in the process. On closer inspection, the arrow looked to be made of the same strange dusty substance as the bow had appeared. "Can you analyze this?" Danny asked Tucker, holding the arrow out to him.

He took it and examined it, his mind clearly already at work. "I'll get right on it," he promised.

"Let's get out of here," Sam suggested, eyeing the watching crowd. "We need to regroup." Danny and Tucker nodded, and all three sped off for home.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"It's a good thing you heal fast, Danny, with the way you keep getting yourself hurt."

Danny rolled his eyes at his sister's disapproving sigh, not missing the troubled look on her face as she forced him into a bed for the second time in the last twenty-four hours (and at least the hundredth time in the last two years). As soon as the trio had returned to base, Tucker had headed straight for the lab to begin work on the arrow, while Danny's family had demanded answers and fussed over him yet again. Jazz had marched him straight back down to the med center while Sam stayed and explained their encounter to Jack and Maddie.

"This is nothing, Jazz. I'm okay, I promise."

Jazz chewed her lip and eyed him carefully, eyebrows creased together in a frown. "I know," she began haltingly. "But… It's not just you I'm worried about."

"What do you mean?" he asked, puzzled.

"Look, you're our army's leader, right? Every time they see you get hurt or give up or even so much as get tired, they get scared. Their morale drops, I can see it. And the last thing we need is people giving up hope." She glanced at the curtain to her right, off toward the battlefield. Her eyes were distant – sad. Danny felt a guilty pang in his heart at the strain on her face. "We've come so far, but it just isn't far enough. We need to stand together, or we haven't got a chance." When her eyes met her brother's again, there was a reluctant sorrow to them. "I hate that it falls to you, but… like it or not, you're their hero. And isn't a real hero someone who helps people find the strength in themselves?"

Danny held his sister's gaze, all his irritation from the past day having faded at her words. He'd been so worried about the physical well-being of his allies that he hadn't even allowed himself to think of how they might be feeling or what they might be thinking. Many of his friends had told him that putting himself at risk for their safety was wrong, but this was the first time he started to believe it. _Huh,_ Danny couldn't help but think with a small smile. _Leave it to Jazz to come up with the most logical reasoning._

"You're right," he finally admitted. "I'm sorry. I guess when you think about it like that I've been looking at this whole thing the wrong way."

Jazz raised her eyebrows and the corners of her mouth twitched into a small smile. "What did you just say?"

"I'm sorry?" he repeated, absently rubbing the back of his neck.

She shook her head. "No, before that."

Danny thought back a moment. "You're right?"

Jazz grinned. "That's the one. I really miss hearing people say that, you know? Especially you." She ruffled his hair and shot him a mock glare, though her eyes were gleaming with mirth. He laughed and shook her off, feeling a strange stab of nostalgia at the exchange. Feelings had been so heavy for so long, it was rare to just speak lightly and forget the weight of the war and the world around them. It made him miss the days when every moment was like this.

As he moved out of her reach, Jazz suddenly frowned, her eyes turning serious again. "What was that?" she asked absently, before reaching forward and tugging the collar of his shirt aside to inspect the arrow wound beneath it.

"What's wro—?" Danny froze mid-sentence when his eyes dropped, answering his question before he could ask it.

The skin around the small puncture had turned black as night.

His eyes widened as a brief streak of panic stabbed at his mind. "W-What is that?" Jazz breathed, meeting her brother's eyes with fear in her gaze. Danny only shook his head. "You don't think the arrow was… poisoned or something, do you?"

Swallowing hard, Danny said, "I don't know… I don't feel anything…" To be completely honest, the wound hardly hurt at all. No more than a normal cut would, anyway. But that didn't explain the abnormal discoloration.

Jazz sighed uneasily and ran a hand through her hair. "I'll go find Tucker and see if he's found out anything. You get some rest, okay?"

She eyed him warily for a second, as if worried to leave him alone, but he nodded in understanding and said obediently, "Right." As she turned to go, a sudden thought hit Danny and he called out, "Jazz? …Don't tell anyone about this, okay?" He nodded toward his shoulder. "It's like you said. I don't… want them to worry." She smiled almost sadly and inclined her head to show agreement, before disappearing through the curtain and into the house.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Danny woke the next morning, he felt surprisingly well-rested – likely more so than he had in a long time. More than that, his injuries from the previous day had almost completely healed. He yanked down his shirt collar to inspect the arrow wound, but was disappointed to see the same blotchy blackness surrounding the scar on his shoulder. With a deep breath, he rose from the bed, changed clothes as fast as he could, and headed into the house and toward the basement. The lab was fairly empty that day, occupied only by three people. Damon was watching his monitors closely, keeping an eye on ghost activity – Danny couldn't decide whether to be relieved or disappointed that the ghosts had apparently returned to the battlefield overnight. Tucker and Jazz were huddled around the former's station together.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Jazz asked when her brother approached them.

"Better, actually," Danny answered honestly. "How's the analysis coming?"

Jazz glanced at Tucker uneasily before saying in a hushed voice, "Looks like there _was_ some sort of substance on the arrowhead. But we can't figure out what it was. If it's poison, it's not any kind we've ever seen before."

_Great…_ Danny thought, his gut twisting uncomfortably. He tried to keep his expression neutral and asked, "What else?"

"This arrow isn't made of any normal material," Tucker explained, tearing his eyes away from the flashing computer screen to give Danny a troubled look. "I did a heat analysis and found that it's made up primarily of a solidified form of ash. But for the life of me, I can't figure out what holds it together in that shape." He picked up a piece of the arrow shaft from the table. "The tip is infinitely sharp, and the shaft doesn't wear or splinter. I had to burn it just to get it to come apart." He set it down again with a sigh, his fingers moving to massage his temples. He looked like he'd been up all night – which he probably had, Danny realized with a guilty pang. "I can't even begin to guess where it was made, or by who."

"Thanks, Tuck," Danny said, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You should get some rest. You look beat."

When Tucker lowered his hands and looked at Danny, his eyes were serious. He spoke in a voice just above a whisper, though there was hardly anyone around to overhear. "If there really was some kind of poison on that arrow, then I need to figure out what it was and how to counter it. I don't have time to sleep because… _you_ may not have time for me to."

Danny was vaguely reminded of all the times he'd had this conversation with his family and friends, when it went the other way around. Frustrating as it was, he knew there would be no arguing over it. "Alright, just don't overdo it, okay?" he warned his friend. Tucker smiled and offered a salute.

"We should tell Mom and Dad," Jazz spoke up. "Maybe they can help—"

"No," Danny interrupted her firmly. "The fewer people there are that know about this, the better."

"But Danny—"

"You said so last night, didn't you? If people knew I was in danger, they'd be worried. They'd lose hope. And that's the last thing I want, okay?" Tucker seemed to see the point and agree, but Jazz still looked hesitant. Danny put his hands on his sister's arms and forced her to look at him. "You told me I need to be strong for everybody. And you were right. This new guy's gonna make people scared. They're gonna worry we won't be able to beat him. I have to show them there's still hope. After all – how can they be afraid if they're following someone who's invincible?" He raised his eyebrows and shot her a cocky grin to make his point, and to his relief she smiled and laughed, shaking her head. "All we have to do is act like nothing's wrong, and pretty soon people will start to believe it."

"When did my immature little brother get so wise?" Jazz asked rhetorically, her words teasing but her tone quiet behind the sad smile on her face.

"Probably the day I grew taller than you," Danny answered lightly, placing his hand about two inches above her head, where it was level with the top of his. Jazz laughed and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Alright, you win," she conceded when she let go. "This stays between the three of us. For now, at least."

"Hey, guys."

All three jumped at the voice and turned to see Sam step into the lab and stride toward them, stretching her arms stiffly. "Any luck with the arrow?" she asked, and Danny relaxed in relief when it seemed she hadn't heard them. Tucker recounted everything he'd learned (save for the unidentifiable substance on the arrow tip), and Sam was understandably just as confused as they were.

"You feeling better?" Sam asked Danny after the discussion was over.

"Yeah, much," he replied with an encouraging smile.

"How's the shoulder?" she went on, her hands stretching toward him to inspect the wound. Danny jerked back out of her reach awkwardly, and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Um…" he started, wracking his brain for an excuse for the sudden movement.

Thankfully, Jazz cut in almost instantly. "He can't expose the wound to open air just yet until it heals. He'll be fine, though." She gave Sam an honest smile and Danny tried not to audibly sigh in relief.

"That's good," Sam said, seeming relieved herself. "Hey, I'll run up to the op center and let your parents know what Tucker's got so far. Wait for me and we'll head out together, okay?" She smiled and gave Danny a brief kiss before jogging across the lab and disappearing up the stairs.

Danny's expression fell as soon as Sam was out of sight. "I hate lying to her…" he admitted in a voice just above a whisper. Shaking himself off, he turned to Jazz. "Thanks for the save, by the way."

She grinned, but there was a certain sadness in her gaze that she couldn't quite hide. "I've had a lot of practice covering for you," she pointed out wryly, making him feel that same unwarranted sting of nostalgia once again. "Just… don't make me do it for too long, okay?" Jazz placed her hand on her brother's uninjured shoulder and squeezed it in an encouraging manner, before turning and following Sam up the basement stairs.

"Just like old times, isn't it?" Tucker said quietly, mirroring Danny's thoughts. Danny didn't answer, only smirked mirthlessly and shook his head, wondering if they had really come as far in all that time as he'd thought they had.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"What's the matter, Skulker? Something got you spooked?" Danny taunted his opponent as the ghost hunter fired yet another shot that was way off target. "I thought you guys were the ones doing the spooking."

"How little you know, child," Skulker retorted, though his voice was lacking its usual venom and instead he sounded distracted. It was easy to notice that all of the ghosts seemed to be on edge, uneasy. And not only that, but the atmosphere on the battlefield was different as well. The air was thick and ominous, like there was a storm coming. But the pale gray clouds in the sky were the same that always hovered over them. Nothing looked different, and yet something was definitely off.

"Your new boss?" Danny guessed as he lazily dodged another half-hearted attack.

"Where?" Skulker demanded, shooting up and glancing around sharply.

This reaction should have been funny, but instead it made Danny feel apprehensive and nervous. "So that's it," he realized. It looked like Crithstain had made a similar impression on the ghosts as he had on the humans.

Skulker growled and flew at Danny, who spun away from the attack and fired an ecto-blast, knocking the other ghost's weapon out of his hands. Skulker reached around and yanked a second gun from his back before saying stiffly, "Something isn't right about him. He gives us a bad feeling."

"What do you mean, 'a bad feeling'?" the half-ghost asked as he jumped out of the way of the beam fired from his opponent's gun. "You telling me you're actually afraid?" Skulker glared at him. "What's his story, anyway?"

"You'll learn nothing from me, boy," Skulker growled, firing another poorly-aimed shot. Frustrated, Danny powered a blast in his right hand and aimed it at Skulker's chest. It connected with his armor and sent him flying backward into the crowd and out of sight. With a sigh, Danny sped off to find another opponent.

A little over an hour later, a sudden hush fell over the crowd. Danny and Dash's fight with Vortex came to a standstill as the latter turned his attention away from them, falling still and silent. Confused and a bit concerned, Danny exchanged a glance with Dash and glided up above the battlefield, hearing Dash activate his Hover Gloves and follow closely behind him.

Once he saw what had stolen the ghosts' focus, a cold feeling of dread washed over him. Crithstain had decided to pay a visit to the front line, apparently, and had just ridden up on his white horse with Pariah Dark in tow (Danny couldn't help but notice that the Ghost King looked angry at being forced to follow along, but that there was also an obvious hint of fear in the way he eyed his new commander).

"Is that him?" Dash asked in a low voice, his grip on his ecto-gun tightening.

"Yeah," Danny answered shortly. He didn't move, only waited for Crithstain to join the battle. But the ghost reined in his horse a ways back from the front line, and still well above the main battlefield. Pariah made to pass by and enter the fray, but Crithstain held out an arm to deny him. The Ghost King glared at the ground and remained still as Crithstain's eyes scanned the armies below him. His gaze met Danny's briefly, but his expression didn't change in the slightest, and soon he was looking elsewhere.

When it became clear that he was not going to fight or even so much as speak, the other ghosts began to return to their own battles, and Dash and Danny were forced back to the ground to do the same. As the battle wore on, however, the ghost army seemed to grow more tense than before, and also more relentless. It was as if they were determined not to appear weak before their new leader, but were at the same time so nervous that it was ruining their concentration. But they weren't the only ones. The humans were distracted as well, as many wanted to get a closer look at the new ghost and more could sense how dangerous he was. Remembering his resolution from that morning, Danny only fought harder, moving from battle to battle and encouraging as many people as he could.

After a while, Crithstain's hollow voice suddenly split the air as he shouted, "Seven days!"

Every fight halted as every arm fell and every face turned to stare at the ghost in wonder. Bewildered, Danny glided up to where he could better see the ghost commander as he spoke again.

"That's how much time you have left. In seven days, I will fight. Until that time you can try whatever you wish, but nothing will stop what's to come." And with that, he turned and rode away, the reluctant Ghost King following in his wake.

When Danny landed on the ground again, Sam was at his side in seconds, with Dash and Paulina in tow. "He's gone," he told them, frowning in confusion.

"What did he mean, we only have seven days?" Paulina asked, looking grave. "What could he be planning?"

"You don't think that's when their Anti-Shield will be finished, do you?" Sam suggested, lowering her voice so the crowd around them wouldn't hear.

"Maybe he's waiting to join the fight until it's done," wondered Dash.

"Whatever the reason," said Danny, "the ghosts are just as unsettled by Crithstain as we are. They're falling apart. We can't let that happen to us. We need to use their confusion and try to gain some ground while we still can. I'm gonna head back to base and let everyone know what's going on."

"I'm coming with you," Sam said at once.

Danny nodded curtly. "Dash, Paulina, you guys stay out here and try to keep everyone going. Make them see that right now, we have the advantage."

"You got it, Fenton," Dash replied as Paulina gave an understanding salute, and both of them disappeared into the crowd. Sam and Danny looked at each other seriously, before heading off without another word.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"And you think he might be talking about the shield?"

Danny nodded gravely and Tucker rubbed his neck with a groan. "Then we're in trouble, man," Tucker went on. "Even if I made some sort of breakthrough right now I'm not sure I could get a full-scale working prototype up and running within a week."

"Make sure you let us know if you get anywhere," Maddie told Tucker. "We can help you. We made the first shield, after all." As Tucker thanked her and promised he would, the door to the Ghost Portal opened with a gust of air and Intel Teams Beta and Gamma rushed through, the door closing automatically behind them.

"How'd it go?" Jazz asked them all immediately.

Amorpho spoke up first. "We infiltrated their base again. I finally got a good look at this Crithstain guy, just as he was coming back from a battle or something. It was weird, he…" Amorpho exchanged a glance with Frostbite, and the unease was clear in both of them. "He was different. He was a ghost, but he… wasn't a ghost. There's definitely something really wrong about that guy."

"And we were not the only ones to sense it," Frostbite pointed out. "All the ghosts around were afraid of him."

"Looks like it's not just here, too," Johnny spoke up, arms folded in front of him. "We met up with some allies from other countries, looks like this guy's really made his way around. He's taken control of _all_ the ghost armies – not just this one."

"I don't think he's travelin' through the Ghost Zone, though," Youngblood said. "A lot of ghosts have started flooding the Zone – to escape the guy, they say. If he's goin' around takin' over the armies, he's doin' it some other way."

Jazz frowned, looking puzzled. "But how? Where did he come from, anyway?"

Danny looked between Frostbite and Amorpho, before asking the question that he knew everyone was dreading. "Any news on the Anti-Shield?"

Amorpho shook his head. "Looks like they moved it to a different location. I didn't hear anything, couldn't get a look at it either."

"You don't think that means it's almost finished, do you?" Sam asked, sounding worried.

"I don't know," Danny said doubtfully. "But if it does, then there's only one thing we can do." Everyone watched him expectantly, and he steeled his expression before saying, "We defeat the ghost army _and_ Crithstain before those seven days are up."

* * *

And showtime! Next few days are a bit crazy, gonna be lots of fun for the gang!

Thanks for reading, and remember: More reviews equal faster updates! See ya soon!

-oMM


	5. November 2

Hi there! I meant to get this up yesterday but I totally forgot by midday, so here we are bright and early today! This was originally supposed to be the shortest chapter (shortest section of my outline, anyway), but then my fingers just sort of ran and ran... I know I need to work on my incessant wordiness, but I can't help it! I have so much to say! Ugh...

Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 2-**_

Jazz hated the time between scouting missions when she had nothing to do but menial jobs around the base. Training her mind for the toughest tasks was something she had done from a very young age, and now at nineteen she found it difficult to focus on an action that required little to no thought process. So the morning of November 2, when she found herself sorting through the boxes of broken and disused weapons and equipment in the lab, her mind wandered absently and more than once she had to double back and re-check an item she'd placed, fixed, or taken apart incorrectly. It was frustrating, to say the least, but it had to be done. Her only comfort was that her brother had been forced to help, under the notion that it would be good for him to focus on something simple and get his mind off Crithstain and the battlefield for a while. While she couldn't disagree with the idea, she knew it wouldn't work. And one glance at Danny as he sat fiddling with the same burned-out ecto-gun he'd picked up almost twenty minutes ago served to prove her suspicions true.

Chewing the inside of her lip thoughtfully, Jazz pulled a strange sort of fluffy coil from the nearest box and threw it at Danny, who jumped a mile high and turned to stare at her incredulously. She laughed and said, "I think you've tried turning that thing on at least a dozen times. If it wasn't dead before, it definitely is now."

He glanced down at the gun in his hands as though seeing it for the first time. "Whoops…" he said sheepishly, grinning and tossing it into the junk pile. As he reached for another piece of equipment, Jazz frowned and leaned forward.

"Danny…" she began, but her voice faltered when he looked her in the eye curiously. She'd been about to ask if something was wrong, or maybe what he was thinking about. If he was feeling alright, if he was worried about something, maybe even if there was anything he wanted to talk about. But she realized with a jolt that she knew the answers to all of those questions.

Was something wrong? The better question was if something was right. They were in the middle of a war, and her little brother was forced to be the figurehead for their side. He wore the crown well, figuratively speaking. He was a born leader, and he truly cared for everyone out there. They would follow him anywhere, and that made her prouder than he would ever know. But it only took a look to see that it wasn't easy for him. It had hurt her to tell him that he couldn't show weakness in front of his army – that he wasn't allowed to hurt or to cry or to run or to fall. The weight of the world was far too much for a seventeen-year-old to hold, but that was what he did. He held the fears and the doubts of everyone and stretched his own strength far enough to cover them all and cast everything else aside. She couldn't even begin to imagine what that must feel like, to have to hide your own sadness because you know that even one frown has the potential to drive people insane and one word could bring about the death of hundreds. For all the times she'd been called 'the smart one', 'the good kid', 'the achiever', what had she achieved, really, when compared to the strength and resolve of her younger brother? He who'd been called 'slacker', 'troublemaker', 'loser'? In reality, he was everything she'd always striven to be, and everything she could never achieve.

She could have asked if he was feeling alright, but she knew what he would say. He would say of course, that he's fine, that she shouldn't worry. Danny was a remarkably fast healer – a fact which they attributed to his being half-ghost – and therefore required less time than his allies did to recover from an injury. But Jazz had always noticed, he also seemed to get hurt more often than his allies in contrast. Did that mean he wasn't being careful? She doubted that was true. Did that mean he fought more battles than anyone else? She doubted that _wasn't_ true. Maybe the stronger ghosts just sought him out, knowing who he was and what he could do and what it would mean if he were to lose or – God forbid – get killed. And no matter how many times he told her not to worry, she did. In that respect, they were the same – which was why she also didn't need to ask if something was worrying him. She knew that like her, he was a worrier. It was one of the few things they had always had in common. But it was one of the many things they would never talk about.

After a heavy pause, Jazz sighed and shook her head. Instead of asking what she'd wanted to, she fixed her brother with a weary look and said, "Might as well give it up, little brother. Mechanics never were your strong suit." She glanced at the ceiling, feigning thoughtfulness. "Or math, or science, or English, or history—"

"Alright already!" Danny cut her off, grinning widely. He made a grab for the coil she'd thrown at him and flung it back in her direction, making her laugh as she stuck her arms up to block her face. "And what makes you the mechanics expert, huh?"

She fixed him with a pointed look. "Who do you think Mom and Dad forced to help them all those times _you_ were off hunting ghosts after school?" He laughed and shook his head, and Jazz smiled fondly at how strangely nostalgic the conversation seemed.

"Jack Fenton to Control Center," their father's voice said over the intercom, crushing the fragile shield of normalcy Jazz had finally been able to construct. Her face fell as she noticed Danny's grin vanish and his gaze dart upward in urgency. Why couldn't they have had just a few more minutes?

"What is it, Dad?" Jazz asked in a defeated sort of voice, letting out a disappointed sigh.

"Why so glum, Jazzy?" Jack said in his usual boisterous tone. Then he gasped. "Are we out of ham again? Because I've been saying for days that we need to send someone to—"

"Jack, important matters, dear," Maddie's voice scolded her husband. "Jazz, honey, is Danny with you?"

Jazz exchanged a glance with her brother and could see that he too wasn't sure whether to laugh or be concerned. "I'm here," Danny said uncertainly.

"Could you kids come pay a visit to the op center?" their mother asked, and Jazz could tell that even though her voice was light, there was urgency in her tone. She must not have wanted to worry anyone else that might be listening. "We've got something to show you."

"We'll be right there," Danny answered casually, but one look at his eyes told Jazz he had noticed the same thing she had. Without another word they got to their feet and headed off.

Up in the op center, Jack and Maddie were huddled around the radio panel to the far left of the room. Maddie glanced up as her children entered. "What's going on?" Danny asked them.

"You'll never believe this," Maddie began, looking weary.

"I'm still having trouble believing it myself," Jack piped up, scratching his head as he read through a few pages of notes.

Jazz put her hands on her hips. "Are you gonna tell us what happened?" she demanded.

Maddie frowned, pointing at a screen just below her. "It seems like something has polluted the oceans overnight," she told them, sounding incredulous. "Reports say that all the saltwater on the earth has turned black. And not only that, but every bit of ocean wildlife is dead."

Jazz felt a stab of alarm pierce her stomach, like she'd been punched in the gut. "W-What?"

"We're getting radios from all over the world reporting the same thing," Jack explained. "Every country with an ocean border. Sea creatures have been washing up on beaches all morning."

"If we were anywhere near an ocean, I'd say we should take a sample and run some tests ourselves," Maddie complained, shaking her head. "But as it is, I suppose we'll have to wait for _other_ scientists to find out what happened."

"I wonder if this is Crithstain's doing," Danny mused, looking troubled.

"What do you mean?" Jazz asked him, startled. Could this actually be the work of the ghost army?

"Can it really be a coincidence that this happens right after he shows up?" Danny said skeptically. "Think about it, do we know anyone else with the power to do something like this? Maybe he's… testing a weapon or something."

Jazz shuddered at the thought. "I hope not. A weapon that could do _this_… Imagine what it could do to our army."

"But _all_ the oceans?" Maddie said doubtfully. "How could one ghost be responsible for something on that scale?"

"Remember what Team Gamma said?" Danny went on. "About how Crithstain had taken control of ghost armies all over the world? He's gotta have some way of traveling instantly without using the Ghost Zone."

Jazz wanted to smack her forehead as she watched her brother's eyes harden. She knew that look. "You're going out to find him, aren't you?"

His gaze flitted cautiously to meet her eyes. "I need to know if he was behind this. And what he's planning."

"Just be careful, Danny," their mother pleaded, wringing her hands together. "Don't go starting a fight you're not ready for."

"Don't worry," Danny said with a small ghost of a smile. "I just wanna chat with him."

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Wait, _all_ the sea creatures?"

"So far, yeah." Out on the battlefield, Danny had met up with Sam and told her the news. Unsurprisingly, she wasn't happy.

"But… _how?_" she demanded, eyes wide in shocked confusion.

Danny shook his head. "No idea. It has to be Crithstain, though. There's no way this timing's a coincidence."

"Maybe," Sam agreed, looking livid. "Oh, he'll pay for this…"

Despite the situation, Danny couldn't help but smile grimly at her expression. "No doubt. But how about we find you something to take that aggression out on in the meantime? I'm sure there's—" His voice broke into a surprised shout as a beam of ecto-energy hit his side and forced him against the nearest building, which cracked against the force.

"Danny!" Sam said his name with wide eyes as the Fright Knight suddenly appeared beside her. In one swift movement the Knight raised and arm and swatted her aside like a bug. Danny stood up shakily as the aching in his head subsided, whipping his gaze around to see Sam get thrown backward. She landed on the ground, sliding between a group of combatants.

"Butting in, kid?" Walker said in a low voice from just above her. He glared down at Sam as the person he'd been fighting was blasted backward into the crowd. "That's against the rules."

"Sam!" Danny called, but she was on her feet in no time and dodging the ghost warden's attack.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me!" she shouted back, glancing over her shoulder. "Danny, watch out!"

Danny blinked and looked around. "Huh? Whoa!" He ducked just in time to dodge a nasty jab of the glowing spear the Fright Knight had brought to battle. It pierced the wall behind him and sliced through the concrete like it was paper. Regaining his bearings, Danny leapt into the air and put some distance between himself and the Knight, squaring off against his opponent.

"Losing your touch, boy?" the Knight taunted him, spinning his spear and holding it at the ready. "Or is your human body simply growing weaker after so many losses?"

"If I remember correctly, it was you who fled our last battle," Danny responded lightly, scratching his chin in mock-thoughtfulness. "What, you decide one humiliation wasn't enough? Well there's plenty more where that came from!" The Knight growled and charged at him, aiming his spear like a lance. Danny shifted intangible and dropped into the ground, resurfacing silently behind the Knight. He aimed a blast at the ghost's feet, effectively tripping him. The force of his charge sent the Knight gliding forward, and the point of his spear bounced off the ground and flew from his gloved hands and he landed with a crash against the street. "In fact, I'm having a two-for-one special today!" Danny sped into the air and caught the spear before it fell, thrusting its tip through the edge of the Knight's tunic and pinning him to the ground. "Now, will that be cash or credit?"

The Knight scowled and tore the spear from the ground, leaping into the air. He charged at Danny once again, but the half-ghost dodged the strike and fired a blast at the abandoned and broken building that now stood behind his opponent, effectively breaking apart the remainder of the cracked outer wall. The building collapsed in a heap of dust, burying the Fright Knight in the rubble.

Danny laughed and brushed his hands together. "On second thought," he said in a loud voice, "maybe you'd better just open up a tab."

The Knight pulled himself out of the debris and howled in anger. The violet flames exuding from his body flared to three times their size, knocking Danny out of the air and clearing the grin from his face. "Enjoy your laugh, boy," the Knight warned in a dangerously low voice as he tore the spear from the ground and leapt into the air. "Because soon you'll be screaming instead."

"Man, something's got your kettle cooked," Danny observed as he picked himself up and dodged another wild attack. He glanced at his wrist, as if checking a watch. "Looks like it's story time. Feel like sharing?" The Knight only grunted in response and fired a glowing, purple beam of ecto-energy. Danny blocked it with a shield before shooting off one of his own. "Aw, come on. You know you'll feel better if you talk about it."

"Not to _you!_" the Knight growled after Danny's attack connected with his shoulder.

"Alright, but if you keep your feelings bottled up like that, you're gonna keep making careless mistakes." Danny easily dodged a poorly-aimed jab of the spear and aimed his next ecto-blast at its shaft. The attack hit and the spear was jolted off-course, its point sticking firmly into a crack in the sidewalk. "See?" he said, pointing to the spear. With a glare, the Fright Knight yanked the shaft and pulled the blade free, keeping his mouth clamped firmly closed. _Maybe I'd better try something else,_ Danny wondered absently. "So where's your new commander?" he asked the Knight. "Busy ordering Pariah Dark around? Or is that fancy bow of his just for show?"

"The Ghost King takes orders from _no one!_" the Knight retorted angrily.

Danny raised his eyebrows. _Now we're getting somewhere_. "That's not what it looked like last time I saw them. Seemed to me like Dark's gone puppet."

The Knight looked frustrated, like he wanted to argue but was unsure how. "Pariah Dark is the true king. But Crithstain has him playing _errand boy_… It's insulting. I have followed the Ghost King for centuries, and never has he bowed to anyone."

"So even he's afraid of this guy?" Danny asked, confirming his suspicion. Pariah Dark was likely the most powerful ghost in all of the Ghost Zone. If Crithstain made even him uneasy…

"The great Pariah Dark fears nothing!" the Knight replied, eyes flashing beneath his helmet. "I only wish my king would take back the crown that's rightfully his. Crithstain has been nothing but trouble for this war."

_Huh, so they don't actually like him any more than we do…_ Danny noted. "The stuff with the oceans this morning… Was that his doing?"

The Knight looked at Danny as though he'd just started clucking like a chicken. "I don't know what you're referring to." It could have been an act, but somehow Danny didn't think it was. He was about to explain when the Knight looked thoughtful and went on, "He did say something many hours ago about 'it beginning today'."

_It's gotta be him,_ Danny realized with a jolt. That proved it, as far as he was concerned. "If you guys hate him so much, why do you follow him? Why don't you do something about him yourselves?"

"I've tried to gather the forces, but their fear of him is too great. All it served was to get me banished from the base, forced to oversee the battlefield night and day. The only one among us who may have the power to stand up to him is the Ghost King, but even he has bent the knee. It shames and angers me to admit, but there's nothing I can do." He finally seemed to remember he was supposed to fighting rather than talking and flashed his eyes at Danny. "That is, except eliminate the opposition." He jabbed forward with his spear so fast that Danny barely had time to jump from his thoughts and dodge below the strike. He wasn't entirely fast enough, and the blade of the spear point just barely grazed his right shoulder, tearing the fabric of his suit and marking a very thin, shallow line across his skin. It wasn't anything close to a serious wound, but when he glanced down at it something strange caught his eye.

Before he had time to puzzle it too seriously, the Knight made another stab with his weapon. This time, Danny dodged deftly before using both hands to fire a large beam, which collided forcefully with the Knights chest and sent him careening backward into the crowd. When he didn't return, Danny landed on the ground and ducked into an alley between buildings before returning his attention to his shoulder.

The spear had torn his suit in a way that bared a fraction of the blackened arrow wound beneath it. In all honesty, Danny had completely forgotten about the injury, seeing as it hadn't bothered him since it happened. He pulled the fabric away and breathed in sharply when he noticed that the discoloration had seemed to change form somewhat. It hadn't spread, for which he felt some relief, but where it had appeared as a blotchy circle before it now looked more like a diamond with rounded corners. It was odd, to say the least. He knew he should be worried, but he attempted to reassure himself in the fact that he still felt perfectly normal.

He stepped out from the alley and watched as Sam defeated Walker and moved on to assist a nearby battalion in their fight against Ember and Skulker. Satisfied that she was fine on her own, he jumped into the air and took off for home.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"So it was Crithstain, after all…" Maddie mused after hearing the report from her son. When Danny returned, he found his parents in the basement lab, checking in on security with Damon. They had already shared their news, so he gathered everyone around to share his.

"Looks like it," Danny said with a sigh. "I don't know how he did it, but it must've been him. According to the Fright Knight, all the ghosts are scared of him. Even Pariah Dark."

"That can't be good…" Jack pointed out. When Maddie elbowed him in the stomach, he added "Er, I mean… What do a bunch of stupid ghosts know? We'll take him out just like all the rest!"

"'Stupid ghosts'?" Danny repeated with a smirk, raising an eyebrow and folding his arms.

"Oh, he didn't mean you, Danny," Maddie scoffed in a sort of teasing voice.

Danny laughed, but was frowning again in seconds. "I don't know, though… It's not as strong, but I felt it too, the couple times I met him. He's… different, off. I can't really explain it, but something just isn't right about him."

Maddie placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Danny. We'll figure this out just like we always do. As long as we stick together, we'll make it through." He smiled at her, grateful for any small amount of reassurance.

"So how's the shield coming?" Danny asked, turning to Tucker.

"Believe it or not," Tucker replied, "I think I may be making progress. Just give me a little time. I can feel a breakthrough coming, I know it." Danny grinned and thanked him. As everyone began to disperse and return to their duties, Tucker shot a meaningful glance at Danny and said in a very low voice, "Hey, how's the shoulder?"

Danny placed a hand over his shoulder. "It's fine, actually," he answered, having decided to keep the strange reforming of the blackness to himself. "It hasn't bugged me at all since it happened. I kind of forgot it was even there." That much was entirely true at least, so he resigned himself that he wasn't lying.

Tucker looked thoughtful. "That's odd… But lucky, I guess. Maybe whatever the virus is, it won't affect you after all."

"Fingers crossed," Danny agreed with a grin. "I'm gonna go lie down for a bit. You okay here?"

"Totally," Tucker assured him. "Get some sleep. You need it." Danny bid him goodbye and slowly climbed the stairs, trying and failing to stifle a yawn. All that had happened in the past few days was keeping his mind at work and serving to make him more tired than usual, which frustrated him to no end as sleep was _not _what he wanted at the moment. But a few hours couldn't hurt, right? Everything seemed to be going okay for the time being, at any rate.

When Danny reached his room, he found it empty. With a huff he dropped onto his bed, not bothering to change clothes or even take his shoes off. With the absence of movement, he finally realized how tired and sore his body actually was. All his muscles ached, and his head hurt so badly he thought his brain must have been pounding against his skull. When he squeezed his eyes shut, colored dots swam across the blackness that covered his vision. "Ugh… All this fighting is really taking its toll on me…" he complained aloud, taking a deep breath and trying to relax.

His mind drifted to Crithstain and the oceans again. What could have possibly caused the sudden death of so many different types of animals and fish? If Crithstain had somehow poisoned the water, wouldn't it have had different effects on different species? Danny didn't know much of anything about biology, but it just seemed so improbable. Aside from divine intervention, he could think of nothing that would cause something like that to happen so fast. And that thought scared him.

If Crithstain was capable of this, who knew what else he was capable of? Or worse, what else he had planned?

* * *

Kind of a dull chapter, I know. I'm trying to work fight scenes and whatnot in wherever I can, just to keep it from getting too expository and boring, but don't worry. Soon enough things really get interesting.

See y'all soon!

-oMM


	6. November 3

Hey, look at me! Two days in a row! The last chapter was kind of on the short side and I like this one better so I wanted to get it up quickly. It's a bit wordy again, but I have a tendency to just type and type and type and type... Ah, you'll see what I mean.

Enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 3-**_

When Danny woke a few hours later, it was still dark outside, and his room was no longer empty. Dash and Kwan had returned from the battlefield sometime while he was asleep, and both were now passed out on the floor, snoring almost peacefully. Danny got up and made his way quietly to the door, taking care not to wake or step on them, then crept quietly downstairs.

He knew there would be people up and about in the basement and likely up in the op center, but instead he let his feet carry him to the front door and out of the house. He stepped absently down the front steps and came to a slow halt before the ghost shield that surrounded the building, leaning his head back and letting his eyes travel up its domed surface. Even as he watched, the shield flickered half a dozen times, threatening to disappear altogether. He knew they didn't have much time before it failed, leaving their base grossly unprotected. It was rare for ghosts to escape past the battlefield and attempt to storm the base, but that didn't mean the occasional attack didn't happen. Not to mention what might change if they knew Fenton Works was unprotected. Who's to say they wouldn't plan a more organized attack?

The thought made Danny shudder involuntarily. As he lowered his eyes and glanced around the street, he took in the sight of the ruined buildings all around him. How long would it be before the one that stood behind him was among them? Before the home he'd lived in all his life was reduced to a crumbling pile of rubble? Would that mean the end of the war? Would his family regroup and move their main base elsewhere? Would any of them even survive?

Then Danny raised both his hands and yanked on his hair, shaking his head. There was no use thinking like that. He had promised that he would try to stay positive – to do whatever he could to keep people from giving up. But the truth was, staying optimistic was harder than it looked. Sure, he'd said they needed to defeat Crithstain and his army before the week was out. But could they? To be honest, he wasn't so sure. And trying to act like he was sure was starting to wear him out.

Before long the door opened behind Danny and he was unsurprised when Sam came to stand next to him, folding her arms across her chest to shield her body from the cold, gray air. "What are you doing?" she asked in a solemn voice.

"Thinking," he answered simply.

She followed his gaze through the thin shield and out over the ruined town. "About time?" she guessed. He didn't answer, and she seemed to know that meant she was right. "Five days left," she whispered, her train of thought instantly running parallel to his. "I just wish I knew what to expect, you know? The mystery of all this is killing me."

"I'm sure we'll figure something out," Danny lied. In all honesty, he'd never been less sure of anything in his life. But true to his word, he couldn't say that. Not now.

Unfortunately, Sam wasn't someone he could easily lie to. She was silent for a moment, and when she spoke her voice was strained. "I hate you like this."

Startled, he finally turned his head to look at her. His throat tightened in guilt when he saw tears resting in the corners of her eyes. "What?" he asked, unable to keep his voice from breaking.

Her eyes were trained straight ahead, not looking at him. "I hate you," she repeated with more strength. "This person that does nothing but fight and lie, that's always tired or angry or guilty. This guy whose smiles are never real and whose eyes are always empty." Danny noticed with a pang that her fists were shaking against her sides, and her face was slowly contorting with fury. "You want to give people hope, but all you're doing is slowly killing yourself and all _I_ can do is stand by and watch it happen." She blinked a few times and shook her head. "I know this war's been hard on you," she said in a slightly softer voice, still talking to the shield in front of her. "Harder than on any of the rest of us. I think that's why I've stuck by you all this time without saying anything, because I knew that deep down you were still the same Danny Fenton I've known all my life. But lately… I just don't know anymore."

She fell silent, and Danny tentatively reached a hand toward her shoulder. "Sam…" he began, having no idea what he wanted to say.

But before his fingers could touch her she spun to her right, halting with her back to him. "I want _my_ Danny back," she said, hunching over and wrapping her arms around herself. "My Danny, who's lazy and clumsy and funny without trying to be and the nicest guy I've ever met. Who never remembers his chores or his homework but doesn't ever miss a birthday or an anniversary. Who's infuriatingly stubborn and clueless, and who's always there if I need to talk. Who hates fighting because it's cruel and it's hard and someone _always_ gets hurt, but who does it anyway because he knows that if he doesn't, things will only be worse. He's strong because he knows he's weak, and he's brave because he's so scared of losing the things he loves. When this war started, he didn't want to defeat the ghosts. He wanted to make peace with them – to stop all this stupid fighting, not to make people want to fight." Her body shuddered as she choked back a sob. "He's the person I love more than anything, and I miss him so badly it hurts all over." She turned her head to the side and he could see that the tears had started to fall down her face. "But when I look in your eyes… I can hardly see him anymore." She slowly wheeled around to face him, looking at him for the first time since she'd come outside. He lowered his eyes, unable to meet her gaze. "Please," she went on. "Tell me he's in there, somewhere."

Danny felt like his tongue was made of leather. "I-I…" he stuttered, his breath catching in his throat and his mouth refusing to form coherent words. When he finally raised his eyes to meet Sam's, he tried to hide the guilt and regret that must have shown on his face. He realized instantly that this was the wrong move, however, as anger flashed across Sam's violet eyes.

"Don't _look at me like that!_" she shrieked, able to see the lie behind his expression. With a furious snarl, she raised her arm and smacked the back of her hand across his face with such force he lost his balance and staggered to the ground, landing hard on his side.

Danny's body was in shock. His limbs had frozen up and he couldn't have moved no matter how much he may have wanted to. But if he could, what would he do? Would he run? Would he go to Sam and pull her into his arms? Would he shake his head and walk away from her? He just barely registered the sound of her gasping sharply from somewhere above him, but all he could do was stare blankly at the ground with wide eyes, breathing hard and fast, mind racing so fast he could barely keep up.

Sam was _mad_. Madder than Danny had ever seen her before – and she was never known to have the most controlled of tempers. He'd seen her angry plenty of times, but _this_… This was _scary_. But the scariest thing about it was that she may have been _right_. He hadn't noticed it, but over the years his outlook on the war had changed. In the beginning, as she'd said, he'd done everything he could to try and make peace with the ghost army – to try and stop the fighting before it escalated too high and so many people got hurt. But nothing had worked. There was so much hatred between the ghosts and the humans that nothing he'd said had had even the slightest effect. Eventually, he threw his efforts into his battles instead, leading the human army and telling them day in and day out that if they kept fighting then one day they would win. But after all this time, could there even be a winner anymore? So much had already been destroyed, wouldn't it be better for everyone if the fighting just stopped? If there was no winner or loser, there were only _survivors_? The more he thought about it in light of the events of the past few days, the more his black mood began to inexplicably lighten. Maybe they couldn't beat Crithstain, but maybe they didn't have to. Maybe… there really _was_ a way.

When Danny finally climbed to his feet, it was slowly, as if he was standing for the first time in a long time and wasn't sure if he could keep his balance on his own.

"I'm not gonna apologize," Sam said in a warning tone, but he could sense a distinct nervousness in her voice. Was she afraid of him? Given the fact that he'd been terrified of her a moment ago, it just made the situation strangely funny to Danny. He cracked a grin and let out a short, breathy laugh. Sam ground her foot against the sidewalk and Danny thought she might start yelling again, so he reached forward before she could speak and grabbed her arm, pulling her roughly against him and wrapping his arms around her as tightly as he could, leaning his head over her shoulder. She held out at first, which for some odd reason only made him laugh once more. He was afraid she would yank herself away and smack him again, but instead she released the tension in her body and wound her arms around his back, digging her fingers into his shirt and burying her face in his shoulder. For minutes they stayed that way, until her tears had stopped falling altogether.

When Danny loosened his grip and started to back away, Sam seemed hesitant. After a second she allowed him to put space between them, but even then she kept her head down, hiding her face. _She's afraid to look at me,_ Danny realized with a jolt, feeling a guilty sense of hurt stab him in the stomach. "Hey…" he said carefully, gently lifting his fingers to touch the bottom of her chin. She took a deep breath and seemed to steel herself before finally raising her eyes and meeting his gaze. When she did so, he watched as the look on her face changed from guarded and wary to relieved and disbelieving, a smile tugging at her lips.

"There you are," she whispered. She forced a glare and drove her fist into his arm, laughing when he flinched in response. Then just as easily, she unclenched her fingers and stretched her arms around his neck, pulling him down so his lips met hers. She pressed their bodies together tightly and moved her mouth almost hungrily against his, and Danny felt a torrent of emotion coming from her and suddenly he realized that he hadn't been the only one hiding how he felt. The two hadn't spent much real time together lately (and hadn't kissed like that in even longer, Danny couldn't help but think), and it hit him that Sam had been distancing herself from him in the same way that he'd been distancing himself from the rest of the world. But in this case, it hurt because he knew the reason was that she hadn't been sure if she could trust him. But that wouldn't happen again, Danny vowed as Sam finally broke contact and glanced up into his eyes again, breathing fast. He locked her gaze and leaned his forehead against hers, trying to let her know what he was thinking because he was unsure if he trusted himself to say it with words. To get through this, they needed to stick together. They needed to be honest with each other, and – more importantly – honest with themselves. He didn't want either of them to have to go through that loneliness again.

Sam tightened her grip around Danny's neck and smiled, and he knew she understood.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Danny, behind you!"

Sam watched as Danny spun around and ducked into the ground just in time to dodge the thick, glowing vine swinging in his direction. He resurfaced right beside her and said, "Why doesn't this guy understand that the ghosts are just as responsible for this war as we are?"

"Silence, human!" Undergrowth retorted as the vine retracted into his arm. "Look around you! This world has become desolate and decayed – deader than the Ghost Zone itself. My children will never see the light of another day so long as you humans continue to ravage your planet! You will pay for this!" He raised both arms and a barrage of thorns flew from his body. Danny crouched down and threw up a shield around him and Sam, and the thorns bounced off and faded into mist.

"Someone needs to pull this weed off his high horse," Sam complained. "How 'bout a boost?" she asked Danny with a grin.

He flattened his shield and she jumped onto it. "Hold on," he said, before thrusting his arm out and sending the shield speeding toward Undergrowth. Sam aimed her gun and pulled the release, firing a rapid clip of ecto-bullets into the ghost, who howled in response. When she was close enough, Danny flicked a finger and the shield spun ninety degrees, propelling Sam upward into the air. She spun midair and kicked Undergrowth in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground with a crash.

She turned to face Danny as he landed beside her. "Nice weed-whacking," he said with an appreciative smile. She grinned and started to step forward, but stopped and turned her gaze downward as a thin vine began wrapping itself around her ankle. It grew and spread and in seconds had wound around her legs and torso, sprouting small, pink flowers as it went.

When the last flower popped into existence on the top of her head, she sighed in an annoyed manner. _Did they have to be pink?_ she wondered as a bored sort of glare crossed her face. She eyed the flowers and said flatly, "I hate this ghost."

"Oh, I don't know," Danny replied, and Sam could tell he was trying not to laugh. "He's kind of growing on me." Then he raised his eyebrows and poked her with his elbow, saying, "Get it? 'Cause he's a plant?"

Sam stared at him incredulously, and couldn't help but laugh. He grinned in response – and for once she knew his smile was real. "Just so you know," she pointed out, "I'm not laughing at your joke, 'cause it was terrible. I'm laughing at how stupidly adorable you are."

His grin only widened as he shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll take 'adorable'." Sam would have hit him if her hands were free, but as it turned out she was beaten to the punch – literally. A thick vine shot from somewhere behind her and slammed into Danny, clearing the smile from his face and hurling him against the street some distance away.

"Danny!" Sam shouted as the vine wrapped around his chest and lifted him from the ground, only to heave him back down again, cracking the street from the force. She heard him yell and saw him try to break free before it happened again, and again after that. Face set in determination, Sam wriggled her right arm so the barrel of her gun was aimed at the vines entrapping her. She held the trigger and fired a few shots until one of the vines broke, freeing her arm. She swung the gun beside her and shot at the vine holding Danny, smirking in satisfaction when Undergrowth screamed from behind her and his grip on Danny loosened. She watched Danny shake his head and blink unfocused eyes, before he seemed to regain his bearings and the familiar determined glare was back on his face. For a second his eyes glowed pale blue before an icy white beam shot from them and struck the vine, freezing it on contact. Then he gritted his teeth and his face screwed up in exertion before the frozen vine burst apart, shattered by the strength of its captive.

Once free, Danny jumped to his feet and stretched his arms out in front of him, firing another freezing beam behind Sam toward Undergrowth's main body. The ghost howled again and Sam could hear the sound of ice chipping. "Sam!" Danny shouted to get her attention, glancing meaningfully behind her. He spread his hands and a flat, green ecto-shield appeared in front of him, and instantly Sam understood. She raised her free arm and fired a rapid barrage of bullets directly at his shield. He angled it at the last second and the bullets ricocheted off its surface and flew past Sam. She guessed they must have hit target, as there was a great explosion and chunks of ice were flung in every direction. And finally, to her extreme relief, the vines around her body withered and fell away.

"Good thinking," Sam said to Danny, massaging her arms and legs as he came to her side. "You okay?"

"Fine," he assured her, rubbing the back of his head. "You?"

"Yup."

"Danny! Sam!"

Both jumped and turned toward the origin of the voice to see Star and a teenage boy they didn't know rushing up to them. Sam's eyes widened when they approached and she noticed that the boy's arms were covered in something dark and red that looked horribly similar to blood.

"What is it?" Danny asked sharply.

"We were down by the river filling canteens," Star explained breathlessly, looking absolutely frantic, "when all of a sudden the water started running dark! We thought maybe there was an oil spill upstream or something, so we followed it for a bit but we couldn't find anything! Then Dirk dropped a canteen in and when he reached in to get it, it looked like… like…" Her voice trailed off and she pointed a shaking finger at her friend's arms. He held them up unnecessarily, looking frightened.

"Go back to a home and get cleaned up," Danny ordered them, and they were all too eager to oblige. Finally he turned to Sam and said, "Let's check it out."

When they reached the river not far from the battlefield, they saw that the two hadn't been lying or exaggerating – the water was no longer running its usual clear green-blue, but rather appeared dark, almost black. Sam followed Danny to the bank and watched as he knelt down, reaching a hand into the water.

"It feels thicker," he observed with a look of vague distaste on his face. When he removed his hand, his fingers were covered in the same deep red liquid that they'd seen on the boy's arms. His gaze turned sharply upstream, and Sam followed it, knowing what he was thinking and fearing the same thing. If there was blood in the water, it had to be coming from somewhere. As one they took off up the bank, following the river as far as they could.

When they reached the small pool that separated the drainage basin from the flowing river, Sam was momentarily afraid of what they would find. But surprisingly, the pool was just as dark as the rest of the water, and wasn't deep enough to hide anything that would have yielded enough runoff to pollute the entire river. The pool was made of nothing but rainwater and snowmelt that drifted from the forest beyond. They had no further to go.

"What the heck…?" Danny wondered aloud, looking utterly lost. Sam stepped close to the edge of the pool and began walking around its bank, peering into it though not sure what she was looking for.

"I don't get it," she said with a deep frown. "How could this have—?" Her voice broke into a startled scream as she suddenly tripped and slid on the muddy surface, losing her balance and falling with a loud splash into the dark water. She heard Danny shout her name as her head went under, and at the last second she reached out and grabbed onto a protruding root with as firm a grip as she could get. She used it as leverage to pull her head back above the surface just as a she felt a strong grip take hold of her arm. She blinked the liquid out of her eyes and allowed herself to be pulled back onto dry land.

"Sam!" Danny was saying, his hands on her arms and his eyes studying her face with a frantic expression. "Sam! Are you okay?"

She spit out a mouthful of the dark liquid and almost gagged at the warm, metallic taste. Her eyes grew wide and she stared at Danny, gripped by a sudden fear. "That's not water," she confirmed slowly.

Disgusted realization crossed his face and he pulled her to her feet. "Let's, uh… get you back to base," he said uneasily.

"Yeah," Sam agreed, her voice sounding unusually high. "Let's."

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Danny and Sam returned to Fenton Works, the first person they encountered was Valerie, who was visiting the kitchen for something for her dad. Her reaction was more or less what they had expected.

"Oh, my—Sam, what _happened?_" Valerie exclaimed, dropping the bread knife she'd been holding as a hand moved to cover her mouth.

"Don't worry, I'm okay!" Sam replied hastily. "It's not my blood."

The look on Valerie's face turned briefly from frantic concern to startled revulsion as she processed these words. Danny realized instantly what she must have been thinking.

"It's not _anyone's_ blood," he pointed out firmly. "At least, not that we know of… Look, have you seen my parents?" He made directly for a cupboard beside the refrigerator and yanked out a pile of folded towels, spilling them unceremoniously onto the tiled floor. He tossed one to Sam and used a second to wipe the blood from his hands, before gathering up the pile and setting it on the kitchen table.

"They're in the op center," Valerie answered distractedly. "You wanna tell me what's going on here? Why is Sam covered in blood if it doesn't, you know… _belong_ to anyone?"

"She fell in the river," Danny explained as Sam tried her best to scrub the dark, red stains from her skin. "It's full of the stuff – but I don't know where it's coming from. We ran to the source and it was the same there, too."

"Danny, is that you?" a voice called from the hallway. Danny spun around just as his mother hurried into the kitchen. "Oh, good, you're back. There's something you should—" She broke off and her eyes widened when she noticed Sam. "Oh! Sam, honey, are you—?"

"I'm fine, Mrs. Fenton," Sam replied. "There's blood in the river. Danny and I were trying to find out why but I fell in—"

"I think you two had better come to the op center," Maddie cut her off, raising a hand and looking troubled. Danny and Sam exchanged glances and followed her out of the kitchen.

When they reached the op center, Jack, Jazz, and Tucker were already inside. Jack was leaning low over the radio panel, turning the knobs this way and that. "It's the same thing on every frequency," he said, sounding perturbed. "Rivers, lakes, streams… Something's dumped gallons of blood in the water everywhere."

"What?" Danny demanded, causing all three to look up at their entrance. "How can that have happened?"

"It doesn't make any sense," Maddie agreed, striding past her son to hover over her husband. "These broadcasts started coming through about an hour ago. As far as we can tell, it's happening all over the world."

"This is just like the ocean thing…" Sam pointed out, rubbing her towel through her matted hair (and once more having to explain that she wasn't injured and that she'd only taken a quick, unwanted bath in the river).

"You don't think Crithstain could be behind this too, do you?" Danny wondered nervously. All that blood had to come from somewhere, and the thought of it made his stomach turn violently.

"It's probably a safe bet," Jack agreed reluctantly.

Tucker looked thoughtful and muttered something under his breath, glancing away from the radio panel. "What, you think it might be something else?" Danny asked him.

"Huh?" Tucker said, looking up with a sort of dazed expression. "Uh, no…" he answered vaguely, looking too deep in thought to speak clearly. Danny shook his head and frowned. It _had_ to be Crithstain. There was no other explanation.

"What are we gonna do about water?" Jazz asked, sounding worried.

"We still have a lot of water stored under the bases and homes for emergencies," Maddie explained, though she too sounded uneasy. "And if need be, I'm sure we can find a way to mine water from underground. We needn't worry about that for now. More importantly, the battlefield is probably chaos with the news. Danny," she turned abruptly to her son, "maybe you could go back out and explain the situation? Try to calm people down?"

"Sure thing," he answered with a curt nod. He waved goodbye to his family and gave Sam a quick smile before heading back out of the house.

When he reached the battlefield it was just as his mother had suspected. People hadn't stopped fighting, but it was obvious that the news had gotten out about the water. Danny did his best to reassure everyone he could that everything was fine and they weren't going to run out of water.

"It's gotta be Crithstain," Danny told Dash in an undertone after the latter had promised to pass on the word about conserving water in the future. "We know he was behind the oceans yesterday, and this is too similar to not be connected."

"Well if that's the case, we'd better find the guy and kick his butt before he causes any more uproar," Dash replied. "I don't know how much longer people can keep it up out here. You should hear it, Fenton, they're starting to get antsy."

Danny bit his lip and glanced over his shoulder at the crowd. "Just do what you can to keep them calm, okay? Let's not force anyone to fight if they can't or don't want to, but I don't want people panicking over this."

"You got it," Dash said, before turning and disappearing into the throng of people. Danny leapt into the air and was about to head home when a voice stopped him.

"Oh, do you humans ever stop complaining?"

Grinding his teeth angrily, Danny spun around to see Pariah Dark gliding over the ghost army toward the front line, a reproachful glare on his face and his new ecto-cannon under his arm. "Long time, no see, _Your Highness_," Danny scoffed, folding his arms and floating in place. "So what's a guy gotta do to get in to see your boss? Lodge a formal complaint?"

The Ghost King sneered as he came to a halt in the air mere yards from Danny. "Sorry, he's not taking appointments at the moment," he answered coldly.

"Well, is there a service number I can call?" Danny asked with a smirk. "It's kind of important. Big, complicated, war stuff – you're not commander anymore so you wouldn't understand." Pariah lunged at Danny, who easily dodged with a satisfied grin. If he could rile the Ghost King, maybe he could get some information out of him. "Then again, if you take his calls, you might have heard something. All I wanna know is why he's decided to get dirty."

"What are you talking about?" Pariah demanded in a huff.

"I know just as well as he does that ghosts don't need water to survive," Danny explained. "Did he think I wouldn't realize what he's doing? He's cutting off our resources. I wanna know why – and how." The Ghost King smirked and shook his head, but didn't respond. Danny glared at him and went on, "If he's so powerful that all of you are afraid of him, why doesn't he just come fight us himself? Though, I guess it's a start that he's finally sending his personal secretary out." He flashed Pariah a condescending grin, and was glad to see the Ghost King's eye narrow in anger.

Pariah lifted his cannon and aimed it at Danny, firing a bright, rose-colored blast from its wide barrel. Danny materialized a shield in front of him. It shattered on impact, but the blast was dissipated as well. "What's the matter, Dark?" Danny goaded the ghost with a laugh. "Short on power these days? Or have you gone soft from spending too much time as Crithstain's lap dog?"

The Ghost King growled dangerously. "You think you have everything all figured out, don't you, child?" He turned his aim toward the crowd of people to Danny's left and fired without warning. Danny jumped in surprise and sped toward them, getting between them at the last second and throwing up another shield. This time, however, when the shield broke, the blast was weakened but not stopped completely. It hit Danny head-on and forced him to the ground. He glanced up through spotted vision to come face to face with the barrel of the ecto-cannon. "But you don't know a thing," Pariah finished icily, looking down at Danny through a cold glare as he pulled the release and the weapon whirred to life. Before it could fire, a bright green ecto-blast suddenly slammed into Pariah from the side, knocking him away from Danny with an angry growl. Danny pushed himself off of the ground and looked to his right in time to see Dash lower his gun and give him a nod, before being intercepted by Technus and forced to turn his attention elsewhere.

Immediately Danny leapt into the air and searched wildly for Pariah. As soon as he saw him rising above the crowd a few feet to his left, he sped toward him, aiming a kick at the ghost's left side. The Ghost King dodged the attack, but Danny continued to aim punch after kick after punch at him, determined to stay close so as not to give the ghost another chance to use the cannon. After a minute of this, Pariah growled and fired a red ecto-blast at Danny, knocking him backward and finally putting some distance between them. He aimed his cannon at where Dash was still fighting Technus, an annoyed glare on his face.

"No!" Danny shouted, thrusting out his arm and firing an ice beam at the weapon. He was mildly surprised when it connected and succeeded in freezing the cannon in a block of ice. Pariah lost his grip on it in surprise and it fell from his hands. Speeding forward, Danny charged up a ball of energy in his hand and threw it at the falling weapon, exploding it on contact. He threw a hand over his face as shards of ice and metal were flung in all directions.

Pariah Dark let out a furious scream, looking livid as he stared at the smoke that remained where his weapon had been seconds before. "_You wait, Phantom!_" he roared at Danny, before turning on his heel and gliding swiftly away. Danny stared after him, wanting more than anything to follow him and figure out just what was going on.

* * *

Heh, I like this whole war thing because I can basically write a battle against any ghost I want. Battles are fun! Whee! Hahaha.

Reviews are love! See ya soon!

-oMM


	7. November 4

Hello again! Thanks as always to all readers and reviewers! Nice long chapter today. I like this one, it was really fun to write. Nice battle scene at the end, haha :)

Enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 4-**_

"How's the shield holding out?"

Damon Gray tore his eyes from the security monitors as Danny came to stand beside him. "Well…" he began, removing his glasses and rubbing at his eyes, looking tired. "I hate to say it, Danny, but it isn't looking good. It's been shorting out more frequently lately, what with the ghost army getting closer. I don't think it can handle the overload of ghost energy, seeing as it's old to begin with." He hesitated, looking grave. "I'd give it another day, maybe two. …I don't think it's gonna last until our week's up."

"Great," Danny said bitterly, hanging his head. "Keep me updated. I'm gonna check in with Tucker on the new shield." He bid Damon good luck and goodbye before making his way to the computer cluster and seeking out his friend.

"I'm almost there, I can feel it," Tucker said when Danny asked about the shield, his fingers twitching above his keyboard. "We'll get it up as soon as we can. Just keep the ghosts back for now, okay?"

"Easier said than done," Danny commented. "I swear, they're more relentless now than ever. I don't know what the new guy's done to them but whatever it is, it's working. It's all we can do not to get flattened."

Tucker frowned, looking worried and sympathetic. "Hang in there, man," he said, offering a small smile.

Danny was about to reply when he was interrupted by the arrival of Dash and Kwan, both of whom stumbled into the basement lab breathing heavily and covered in sweat. "What happened to you guys?" Danny asked them, alarmed.

"It's been getting hotter out there all day," Kwan said breathlessly, his face flushed as he yanked off his equipment and piled it by the door.

Dash dropped into the nearest chair, leaning back and closing his eyes. "Fighting in this heat's getting really tough," he complained.

"But it's November," Danny pointed out in confusion. Curious, he nodded to Tucker and headed for the stairs, followed closely by a similarly interested Valerie. Even as they climbed out of the basement, they could already notice the air getting warmer, and by the time they stepped outside and through the ghost shield both were covered in a thin layer of sweat.

Danny's eyes widened as he took in the view outside. The gray clouds he'd become so accustomed to had disappeared completely, and the bright sun was burning down on them from above. The waves of heat in the air were almost visible to the naked eye, and the distant horizon looked like it was on fire. "What's going on?" he wondered incredulously, shifting to his cold-bodied ghost form to avoid the heat.

Valerie pressed a button on her belt and was instantly covered in her red jumpsuit (which was insulated against harsh weather conditions, and would therefore be able to keep her cool). Glancing at a sensor on her wrist, she said, "One hundred and two degrees, Fahrenheit. And rising."

"This could be bad…" Danny admitted. "We should head to the battlefield and see what's going on. With the water shortage, this is the last thing we need right now."

"Good call," Valerie agreed, summoning her glider. Together, they sped off toward the front line.

In minutes they had met up with Sam and Paulina, who confirmed that the intense heat was taking an increasingly heave toll on the human fighters while having no visible effect on the ghosts. In fact, they had already lost a significant amount of ground since early that morning. Worried, Danny and Valerie stayed to assist as best they could for a while, hoping to try and push the ghosts back even a little. But though Danny hated to admit it, they had no success whatsoever.

"Tough being the only ghost in an army of weak humans, isn't it?" Ember taunted Danny with a smirk as he and Paulina squared off against her and Skulker. "You should've been on our side from the beginning."

"Yeah, right," Danny shot back. "You're telling me you _wouldn't _have tried to kill me straight away if I showed up on your doorstep?"

"He's got a point," Skulker pointed out, firing a missile at Danny from his arm. Danny dodged as Paulina shot a blast at Ember, almost hitting the neck of her guitar. "Besides, hunting you is far too much fun."

"And beating you is even more so," Danny said, gliding behind Skulker and throwing an exploding orb of ecto-energy at his back, knocking him into a nearby building. When Ember strummed her guitar and sent a wave of blue flames at Paulina, she only barely dodged, singeing the edges of her hair as she dropped to her stomach to avoid the attack. Danny flew toward Ember and knocked her aside, before turning to Paulina and helping her to her feet. "You okay?" he asked, noticing how the heat was affecting her.

"I'll manage," she replied, forcing a smile below her tired eyes. Danny was about to insist she leave the battlefield when a glowing rope flew forward and attached itself around her waist. She shrieked and was yanked away from Danny by Skulker, who was emerging from the broken building at the other end of the rope.

By then Ember had regained her footing as well and turned the wheel on her guitar before striking a chord, sending a mass of pink energy toward the disoriented and defenseless Paulina. Danny formed a disc of ecto-energy and fired it at Skulker's rope, effectively snapping it, before grabbing Paulina around the waist and pulling them both out of range of Ember's attack. He flew away from both ghosts and landed on the other side of an abandoned apartment building. When he set Paulina on her feet, her legs instantly gave out and she fell back against him.

"Thanks, Danny," she said breathlessly, her voice barely a whisper, before her eyes slid closed and she passed out. Frustrated and afraid, Danny glanced around the corner to see that Valerie had taken up his battle with Skulker and Ember, and was faring relatively well. Everywhere else he looked, however, he noticed that people were barely remaining on their feet. He couldn't keep them all out there, he realized, but he didn't know what else to do. It wasn't as though he could pull his entire army away and ask the ghosts to pleasantly stay put and wait for them to come back. There was only one thing he could think to do – he had to talk to Crithstain. There wasn't a doubt in Danny's mind that the ghost was behind this event as well, and he had to make it stop before it was too late. So with a determined glare he gathered Paulina into his arms and took to the air, speeding back toward the main base.

While he was gone, Sam's parents had set up an assortment of fans in the medical center behind the house in an attempt to cool the over-heated fighters who'd returned for some much-needed rest. Once he'd made sure that Paulina was safe for the time being, he left the medical center and hurried to the basement, looking for his sister. He found her standing over Tucker's station.

"Jazz," Danny greeted her in an even voice, "I need you to contact Team Beta for me."

"Sure, Danny," she agreed, raising her wrist communicator. Suddenly, she froze, eyeing her brother warily. "Why?"

"Just do it," he replied, slightly more harshly than he'd meant to. "I'll explain when they're here." Jazz studied him for a moment, before turning away and speaking into her communicator. Danny paced back and forth across the lab for the next several minutes, conscious of his sister's eyes on him all the while, before the Ghost Portal finally screeched open and Frostbite and Amorpho glided through.

"What's this about?" Amorpho asked as the Portal closed behind them. Jazz turned to Danny and raised her eyebrows.

Taking a deep breath, Danny answered, "I need you guys to get me into the ghosts' base of operations."

Jazz's reaction was immediate and expected. "Danny, no," she said sternly. "That's probably the most dangerous thing you could do right now."

"Don't you think I know that?" he asked her, his voice sounding strained. She hesitated at the desperation that must have been clear on his face. "People are dropping out there, it's complete chaos. If we don't do something the ghosts are gonna reach this place by sundown."

That seemed to have a more serious effect on everyone. "There's no way the shield can withstand that level of attack," Damon admitted uneasily.

Tucker chewed on his lip and shot a glance at his computer screen before looking back at Danny. "You sure you wanna do this, man?" he asked uncertainly.

Danny let out a heavy sigh. "I have to, Tuck. I'm not going to look for a fight, I just want to find Crithstain and talk to him. This has to stop."

"You do realize that if we take you in through the entrance we found, we probably won't be able to use it to spy on them anymore," Amorpho pointed out.

"I know," Danny conceded, having figured as much. "But I can't just go in through the front door, can I?"

"If that's what you want, Danny," Frostbite offered, "we'd be happy to help you in whatever way we can."

"Long as the boss gives the okay," said Amorpho.

Danny turned to his sister, his eyes serious. "Jazz?"

She glared at him for a long minute, and when she finally spoke her voice sounded brittle. "Fine," she said, admitting defeat. "Just please, Danny, _please_ be careful?"

He gave her a confident smile. "Come on, me? Not careful?" Jazz snorted and rolled her eyes, but smiled back all the same.

"It's a bit of a trip," Amorpho said, stretching his arms and rubbing his neck. "It'll take some time to get us there."

Danny strode over to the locked safe near the Portal and changed momentarily to human form, placing his hand on the sensor. The safe door swung open after a series of beeps and Danny rooted through the piles of papers and small objects before his hand closed on a single sheet of glowing paper wound around a splintered, wooden scroll. "Not if we use this," he announced as he pulled it from the safe and slammed the door shut.

"The Infi-map?" Tucker recognized it instantly. "I thought we decided it was dangerous to take it into the Ghost Zone? If the enemy gets a hold of it, it could lead them straight here."

"We just have to make sure that doesn't happen," Danny promised, understanding the risk he would be taking by carrying the map directly into the ghosts' stronghold. "I'll destroy it if I have to. But right now it's the fastest way to get through the Ghost Zone, and time isn't something we can afford to waste."

"I guess you're right," Tucker admitted. "Better get going, then."

Danny nodded and spread the map out in front of him as Frostbite opened the Ghost Portal. "Let's hit it."

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Are you sure this is gonna work?"

Danny glared at Amorpho, who was now in the persona of one of Walker's prison guards. When the trio had arrived at the ghosts' base of operations, Danny had recognized it to be the mansion once belonging to Vlad Masters during his time as mayor of Amity Park. It was a good location, he'd had to admit, being close to the center of town with easy access to the battlefield and no residential streets nearby. Inside, however, the place was crawling with the ghostly guards who had once watched Walker's prison. There were too many to fight, and besides Danny hadn't wanted to cause too large of an uproar. So he'd been forced to come up with a Plan B for getting out of the side room into which the secret entrance from the Ghost Zone had dropped them and in to see Crithstain.

"No, I'm not," Danny answered Amorpho's question honestly. "But have you got a better idea?" He adjusted the glowing bindings around his wrists and stretched and clenched his fingers. "Just keep cool, those guys aren't exactly known for their smarts." He turned to Frostbite, who was peering through the crack in the door. "Stay here," he told the yeti ghost. "Keep watch. We'll call you if the plan goes south."

Frostbite nodded. "The hall is clear," he said in a low voice. "It's now or never."

Taking a deep breath, Danny and Amorpho exited the room as quietly as they could and started down the long, dark hallway. "Yeesh, don't ghosts believe in light bulbs?" Danny complained in a whisper, squinting to see through the darkness. When they turned a corner, they saw a light at the end of the hall – behind a small team of identical guards.

"You there!" one of them shouted, and Danny nudged Amorpho in the side. Still disguised, Amorpho clamped a hand on Danny's arm and dragged him forward.

"Found this one trying to sneak in through a window," Amorpho said loudly to the approaching guards. "Figured the boss would wanna see him."

The guards in front froze when they came near enough, causing the ones in back to collide with them blindly. "Danny Phantom?" one said aloud, sounding surprised (and, to Danny's satisfaction, a little afraid).

Danny glared at the guards. "So you guys are working for the new guy now, too, huh?" he asked them as one of them moved to take his other arm.

"Should we take him to the cells?" one guard suggested, ignoring Danny's rhetorical question.

The one in front frowned. "No, he's right," he said, nodding to Amorpho. "Let's take this one to the boss."

Danny tried not to grin in triumph as they ushered him down the hall and up the stairs, coming to a halt outside a pair of wide, double doors. One of the guards knocked twice and before long the Ghost King's voice said, "Enter." The doors were pushed open to reveal a spacious room that was probably meant to be a study, but had been transformed into a sort of throne room. Crithstain was seated on the single, high-backed chair against the back wall, Pariah Dark standing closely to his left.

"Well, well, well," Pariah said with a smirk as Danny was brought into the room and shoved to his knees. "Danny Phantom. I'm impressed," he told the guards.

"Save your praise," Crithstain spoke, his cold, hollow voice making Danny shudder involuntarily. "This is obviously a ruse. You didn't notice that guard is a friend of his?"

"Uh-oh," Amorpho whispered under his breath as the guards behind them started to move in, drawing their weapons.

"Seize them!" Pariah shouted, and instantly the guards attacked. Danny dissolved the bindings on his wrists and leapt up from the ground as Amorpho turned to face the onslaught. The five identical guards were hardly organized, and in what felt like no time Danny and Amorpho had forced them through the doorway. Danny slammed the doors shut and threw a shield up to block them, and Amorpho pushed against the doors to hold them closed.

"A poor display," Crithstain observed as Pariah smacked a hand to his head.

"How that useless prison held anyone I'll never quite understand," the Ghost King complained, before drawing his sword and moving from his position by his leader's side.

"Wait," Crithstain said, halting Pariah in his tracks. The Ghost King reluctantly sheathed his sword as his commander continued, "He has come all this way. Let's hear what he has to say."

Something in his tone bothered Danny, but he tried to ignore it. "I need to talk to you about what you've been doing." Crithstain raised his eyebrows but remained silent, and Danny hesitated before going on. "First the oceans, then the rest of the water, and now this heat thing. We both know the humans are the only ones being affected, so I get that you're doing it to hurt our side – but what I don't understand is how?"

"My powers are beyond human comprehension," Crithstain explained cryptically, looking amused. "If you came simply to try and 'understand', then I'm afraid it's been for nothing."

Danny felt a twinge of anger in reaction to the ghost's mysterious and condescending tone, but he kept his voice level as he said, "I also wanted to… ask you to… stop. Please." _Wow, that was intimidating_, he thought dryly, mentally smacking himself. _Danny Phantom, striking fear into the hearts of many with his polite conversation._

Pariah Dark laughed. "Well, he did say 'please'," he said to Crithstain, before turning to Danny with almost hungry eyes. "Would you surrender yourself over to us?" he demanded. Crithstain's eyebrows rose a fraction of an inch, showing that he too was interested in the answer.

Danny hesitated, his mind running on overdrive. If he gave himself up, could there really be a chance of saving everyone else from whatever it was Crithstain was planning? The war would be over – the ghosts would win, but maybe his army's lives could be spared. And wasn't that what mattered more than anything else? Hadn't he promised to try and find a peaceful solution if he could? Now here one was, staring him in the face.

"If I did…" he finally began haltingly.

"Danny, no!" Amorpho interjected, his voice strained with the exertion of holding the doors from the guards who must still have been attempting to break them down.

"If I did," Danny said again with more strength, speaking loudly over Amorpho and refusing to turn and look at him, "would you leave everyone else alone and stop all this?" Crithstain blinked and tilted his chin ever so slightly, and Danny lowered his head in solemn defeat. "Then… I surrender."

"NO!" Amorpho shouted again, but for the second time his protest fell on deaf ears.

"Interesting…" Crithstain mused, leaning back in his chair.

Pariah Dark laughed in triumph. "At last! Please, allow me to do the—"

"Wait," Crithstain cut him off, holding out a hand. "I allowed your little game as a test to learn his will, but I haven't agreed to anything. Besides, the events that I've set in motion cannot be stopped."

Alarmed, Danny's eyes snapped onto Crithstain, anger flaring. "What?" he demanded sharply. So the ghost hadn't intended to make a deal at all? "Why, you…"

"But… He is the leader of our enemy army," Pariah argued somewhat timidly, looking startled. "He is a disgrace to ghosts everywhere – he is the reason this war has gone on for so long!"

"Hey!" Danny shouted defensively.

"I _know_ who is responsible for this war, Ghost King," Crithstain said sharply, "and it _isn't_ this boy." He shot Pariah Dark a cold look and the Ghost King fell silent instantly. Turning his attention back to Danny, he went on, "Moreover, I wanted to see if the right choice had been made." A thin, satisfied smile appeared on his pale face. "You do not disappoint, Daniel." Danny felt himself cringe – that was the first time Crithstain had used his name. "You weigh the fate of the world against your own life and understand sacrifice. It will be a good fight, indeed." Something registered in Danny's memory. That was the second time Crithstain had said those words, but he was no closer to understanding what they meant than he'd been on the night of their first encounter.

But at the moment, Danny was too angry to dwell on it. "Whatever it is you're doing, I _will_ figure it out," he promised, venom in his voice. "And I _will_ stop you."

Crithstain's eyes flashed dangerously. "I told you, it cannot be stopped. I warned you when I arrived that there would be seven days – and now, you are down to four. I advise you not to waste your remaining time."

"If this is about the Anti-Shield," Danny guessed, "then you might as well give it up. We know about that and my friend's building a new shield as we speak." It wasn't _entirely_ a lie – they really did know about it and Tucker had said he was close to completion on the model. For all he knew, they could have made a breakthrough already.

"The Anti-Shield?" Crithstain repeated. "I ordered a cease in construction of that useless instrument the day I arrived. Soon there won't be a need for such measures."

_Wait, what?_ Danny thought, his anger fading quickly and leaving only confusion. "If it's not the shield, then… what happens in four days? What are you planning for November eighth?" Frustrated, he glared at Crithstain. "This is all leading up to something, isn't it? Well whatever you're getting ready for, I'm not gonna let it happen!"

"It's not me that's being prepared," Crithstain countered calmly. "It's you. All of you. Your worlds – both human and ghost."

"What do you mean? I thought—"

"Enough." Crithstain got to his feet and leered down at Danny, who tried not to step back reflexively. "I told you your human mind could not understand. You will see soon enough. Though, to be frank you should have seen this coming long ago. You all should have." Slowly he began to pace back and forth before his throne. "This war is merely a byproduct – the child of the uncontrolled hatred and rage that exists between you denizens of the Earth. It has done nothing but reduce your races to animals, animals who act on nothing but the barest survival instincts. You have ravaged this world and brought ruin to the gifts creation has given you. And for that, you will all pay. For I am the one who has come to end this world's suffering."

"I WON'T LET YOU DO THAT!" With a feral snarl, Danny leapt into the air and sped toward Crithstain. The ghost reached behind him and pulled out his bow, knocking and loosing an arrow in under a second. Danny pulled out of his charge and threw a shield in front of him just in time. The arrow bounced off it surface and darted back toward its owner. With a twitch of Crithstain's eye, however, the arrow altered its course and glided around the back of the throne, before speeding once more toward Danny. He flinched in surprised and before he could think of dodging, a loud bang sounded from behind him, followed closely by a cacophony of voices, and something slammed into his left side, knocking him onto the floor.

He rolled onto his back and noticed that the double doors had been finally flung open and Walker's guards were flooding the room. And not only that, but apparently Amorpho (still in the guise of a prison guard but now slightly larger than the others) had shoved Danny out of the way of Crithstain's arrow at the last second – and had taken the attack in his stead.

"Amorpho!" Danny shouted, eyes widening at the sight of the black and red arrow shaft stuck fast in the ghost's chest.

Pariah Dark drew his sword once again. "You should be careful about using that bow," he said evenly to Crithstain. "You know what would happen if it were—"

"We needn't worry about that," Crithstain replied (though he replaced the bow in the quiver on his back). "I'm the only one who can touch it. If anyone else were to try, they would be dead within minutes."

As Amorpho dropped to his knees, Danny ran to his side. "I'll be fine," Amorpho promised, his face screwed up in pain. "I'm already dead, remember?"

"That's not funny," Danny said gravely as Amorpho chuckled.

"Aw, lighten up, kid," the shape shifter joked. "And get it together – we got company." He shoved Danny to the side and jumped out of the way as a pair of ghost guards reached them. Danny rose and was about to force them away when he happened to glance to his right and see a ruby beam of ecto-energy shooting straight for him. He jumped and spun to the side just in time to avoid the attack as the Ghost King descended on him with a furious cry.

"I don't care what _he_ says," Pariah growled in a low voice so only Danny would hear. "This war ends the moment you do!" He thrust his sword forward and Danny leapt into the air to avoid the strike. He landed on the glowing blade and used it as leverage to jump into a somersault midair, flipping over the Ghost King and firing a rapid ecto-ray at him from behind. It collided with the ghost's back, knocking him forward. As he spun around, Danny caught a glimpse of Amorpho fighting off the hoard of prison guards – though thanks to the arrow wound he was barely holding his own, despite being larger and stronger than them. And then suddenly, Pariah was before him again, stealing his attention away with an ecto-blast that collided painfully with Danny's chest, hurling him against the far right wall of the room. He was on his feet again in seconds and dodging yet another strike of the Ghost King's sword. He soared toward the high ceiling and fired four attacks of his own, only one of which hit target and smashed Pariah's helmet.

He couldn't keep this up. Amorpho needed help, and they were wasting time. He would have to finish this quickly and get out of there before it was too late. As he chanced another glance across the room at Amorpho, he instantly regretted the action when Pariah seized the opportunity to grab Danny's ankle and swing him in a wide arc, heaving him against the floor below. Muscles aching, he looked up to see Pariah's blade ignite in crimson flames, before the Ghost King hurled the sword toward the ground at lightning speed. Danny rolled out of the way as fast as he could and the blade struck the floor with such force that almost half of its length sunk beneath the cracked marble surface.

As the flames faded from the blade Danny jumped to his feet and flew toward Pariah, aiming a fist at the Ghost King and hoping to keep him separated from his sword. He dodged a punch which would have hit his chest and landed a kick against Pariah's side. The Ghost King growled and grabbed Danny's arm, twisting it up over his shoulder and causing him to yell in pain as his bones creaked in protest. Then Pariah smirked and his other hand began to glow red, as he clenched his gloved fingers into a fist and hit Danny hard in the jaw, sending him flying backward.

He landed on his stomach near the center of the room, the unpleasant taste of mixed blood and ectoplasm in his mouth. Raising his head, his vision came to focus on Amorpho's battle once again. Suddenly, one of the guards managed to smash his club against the back of Amorpho's head, and the shape shifter slunk to the floor with a low groan. A cold feeling of dread washed over Danny and he climbed shakily to his feet. "Amorpho!" he called, charging a ball of energy in each hand. He took a step forward but was frozen in his tracks when an intensely sharp pain exploded in his lower back, instantly numbing all of his senses and causing his body to seize up in shock. As the energy vanished from his hands, his wide eyes dropped slowly to see the glowing blade of Pariah Dark's sword emerging from his stomach.

"W-What..?" Danny stuttered breathlessly, staring at the ghostly steel stained green with ectoplasm. A low rumble of a chuckle sounded from behind him and in one swift motion the sword was yanked backward, sliding out of Danny's body and causing him to hunch forward with a strangled cry. As he dropped weakly to his hands and knees, the Ghost King began to laugh – a cruel, wicked laugh – in triumph. _We've lost…_ Danny realized suddenly, fighting with all his fading strength to keep from reverting to human form. His eyes traveled to Amorpho, who was stirring but hadn't risen to his feet. The guards were closing in around him, ready to finish him off. _This is my fault…_ Danny thought miserably, lowering his gaze and glaring angrily at the floor. _We should never have come here. I should have known it was pointless. And now, because of me…_ He could feel frustrated tears forming in his eyes as his stomach twisted painfully. Slow, deliberate footsteps closed in behind him and an ominous shadow stretched across the floor. Danny watched helplessly as the shadow lifted the shape of a sword.

"The Earth is ours!" Pariah announced gleefully, and Danny squeezed his eyes shut and waited for him to strike. A soft _whoosh_ sounded, but was followed closely by a metallic _clang_ and the dull sound of ice chipping. Startled, Danny opened his eyes and rolled onto his side, twisting his head around.

"Frostbite…" Danny said in shocked relief, his voice sounding strained and hoarse. The yeti ghost had thrown himself between Danny and Pariah and parried the latter's sword against his frozen left arm at the last second.

"I'd say the plan has 'gone south', wouldn't you agree?" Frostbite muttered as he grappled against the Ghost King's strength. Also to Danny's surprise, the guards around Amorpho had all been knocked aside, and the shape shifter was rising clumsily to his feet. Frostbite growled and shoved forward, pushing Pariah backward. The Ghost King glared wildly at the newcomer, a look of utter fury on his scarred face. Frostbite fired an icy beam at Pariah, forcing him back and freezing his sword arm against the far wall. Finally, he turned to Danny.

"Take the Infi-map," he said urgently, kneeling down and handing Danny the scroll. "Go somewhere safe. We'll hold them off." The guards had begun to come to and circle around the trio, and Pariah was busy furiously breaking the ice that bound him.

"I am _not_ leaving you here," Danny growled. He tried to climb to his feet but stumbled and was forced back to his knees, wrapping an arm around his stomach and grunting through gritted teeth.

"Oh, yes, you are," Amorpho argued, barely dodging the club of a guard and knocking the attacker back with a punch of his own.

"Remember the code, Danny," Frostbite pointed out, eyeing Danny's injury with obvious worry. "You _must_ get out of here alive. Your friends need you – I will _not_ let you die here."

"What, so I'm supposed to let you guys die?" Danny retorted desperately, black dots dancing across his vision. "Not gonna happen! We're getting out of here together!"

"Shut him up, Frostbite!" Amorpho yelled.

Frostbite let out a frustrated growl, before reaching for the map in Danny's hands and unrolling it in one swift movement. Danny's eyes widened in alarm. "What are you—?"

"Go somewhere safe!" Frostbite ordered again, and suddenly the map began to glow. Danny's grip on the map suddenly tightened against his will, his fingers cemented to the scroll.

"NO!" he screamed as the map shot into the air, dragging him with it away from the sad, determined faces of Frostbite and Amorpho as Pariah finally broke free and the guards closed in. The last thing he saw of the room was Crithstain – seated calmly on his throne and watching Danny with a look of grim satisfaction.

In no time he was back in the Ghost Zone, flying so fast that everything around him was reduced to a dull green blur. The motion made him nauseous and the whipping colors blinded his eyes and pounded at his head, but still the map led him on. After a few long minutes, just when Danny was starting to feel as though his arm would break from the strain, the map began to slow. Danny opened his eyes warily and saw that he was gliding through what looked like a crystal forest. He vaguely realized he didn't recognize the place, and was momentarily confused – he'd thought the map would be taking him back to Fenton Works, but if that were the case the trip should have taken longer.

The map at last came to a halt and released its hold on Danny. His tired fingers lost their grip immediately and both he and the map tumbled to the strange, crystalline ground. He landed hard on his stomach, the map just ahead and out of his reach. _Great,_ he thought weakly, glaring at the map. _Why couldn't you have just taken me home? _Finally, his strength dwindled below the threshold needed to sustain his ghost form, and he cringed as the familiar white ring of light encircled itself around his body. Once human, the pain in his stomach only seemed to intensify, nearly blinding him. In a last-ditch effort, he lifted his head and reached toward the map, but even that proved too much for his tired body to handle. His arm went limp and his head dropped back to the ground.

As his vision faded, Danny thought he saw a strange image in the glass-like surfaces around him, reflecting a shape of ghostly white, red, and black.

* * *

Hmm... Whoever could that be? We'll find out soon enough!

See you soon!

-oMM


	8. November 5, Part I - White

Hey again, everybody! Thanks as always to everybody who read and reviewed the last chapter, and as promised here's the next one. I had to split this day into two chapters, since it ended up being so long, and as a result this one's sort of lacking on the action front, but I like it all the same so hopefully you do too.

So here's Part 1 of November 5th! Enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 5-**_

_**-Part I: White-**_

Sam knew it was probably past midnight, and that after a difficult day of fighting in broiling heat she should have spent the night resting up. But no matter how hard she tried, she simply couldn't get to sleep. So instead, she somehow found herself outside the Fentons' house, sitting on the front steps and watching the ghost shield flicker in and out of existence.

The heat had died down considerably when the sun set, much to everyone's relief. During the day, they had formed teams and rested in shifts, making sure to keep as well-hydrated as they dared given their dwindling water supply. It wasn't easy, and many people had passed out from exertion and had to be taken away from the battlefield. But they had managed not to lose as much ground as Sam had feared, and now that the temperature had dropped they could hold their position again.

But that was only half the reason for Sam's restlessness. The other half – the bigger half – was Danny. When she had returned a few hours prior, she'd learned from a rather frantic Jazz that he and Intelligence Team Beta had gone on a sudden expedition to the ghosts' main base – to talk to Crithstain, he'd said. But that was early afternoon, and they had yet to return. Sam had wanted to go after them, but Team Beta had been the only ones who knew the way to the secret entrance, and besides there was the code to consider (as Wulf had been quick to remind her). So instead she'd been forced upstairs by her parents, with instructions to get some rest and assurance that Danny, Frostbite, and Amorpho would probably be back safe and sound by morning. But try as she might, she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. So rather than lie awake in Jazz's dark bedroom, she stole away to the front stoop to sit by the light of the ghost shield.

When the front door opened suddenly, Sam glanced back to see Paulina emerge into the night air, wrapping her sweater around herself and quietly snapping the door closed behind her. "I thought I heard someone come out here," the Latina said with a small smile.

"Sorry to wake you," Sam told her as she scooted over on the second step down to make room.

"Don't worry about it," Paulina said, seating herself beside Sam. After a few beats of silence, she muttered in a sad voice, "You're worried about Danny, aren't you?"

Sam sighed, rubbing her forehead wearily. "Of course I'm worried about him," she answered with a wry smile. "He shouldn't have been gone this long… What if something happened to them? What if…?" She shook her head and took a deep breath. "If I'd been here, I wouldn't have let him go," she vowed bitterly. "I didn't even know he left the battlefield until long after he had."

Paulina bit her lip, looking strangely guilty. "It was my fault," she admitted, sounding miserable. "He and I were fighting together and I must have passed out. He brought me back here, and they said he went into the Ghost Zone right after that. Maybe if I hadn't messed up, he wouldn't have acted to rashly…"

Sam didn't respond, unable to think of anything to say. Of course she didn't blame Paulina – the heat had been hard on everyone, she'd felt it herself. But at the same time, comforting the depressed Latina wasn't something Sam had ever thought she would have had the opportunity to do, and therefore wasn't prepared for. "If Crithstain hadn't shown up so suddenly, none of this would have happened," she said, staring at the shield with a stony expression. "We might have even won by now."

"I'm sure he's fine, you know," Paulina assured Sam with a smile.

Sam leaned wearily against the side of the stoop. "You don't know that," she argued.

"Yes, I do," Paulina insisted. "Danny would never let us down, right? Especially you." Sam sat up and glanced over at Paulina, studying her and thinking about her words.

She was right, in a way. Sam knew that Danny would never do anything to let them down if he could help it. He would find a way to make it home. Slowly, a contented smile spread across Sam's face, and silence fell between the girls again.

After a long few minutes, Paulina spoke up again in a solemn voice. "You know, I'm jealous of you."

Startled, Sam looked around at her incredulously. "Me? What for?"

There was a pained look on her face when she answered, "You have someone that cares about you… Someone that loves you for _you_. I'd give anything to have that, especially from someone like Danny."

"Are you kidding?" Sam stuttered, ignoring the tiny twinge of annoyance at her mention of Danny. "Everyone loves you."

"It's different," Paulina protested, shaking her head. "You've always been a weird, creepy, Goth geek—"

"Watch it now," Sam interrupted with a chuckle, feigning indignation.

"Sorry," Paulina admitted with a light flush. "Old habits… But my point is that Danny loves you _because_ of all that. People have only ever wanted me for the way I look." She glanced out at the shield, her eyes distant. "I didn't mind it back then, but after fighting in this war for two and half years, I… I wish I could have what you have. Especially knowing I… we may not have much time left."

Sam frowned, following the other girl's gaze out over the ruined town. "Then give yourself time," she answered seriously.

"Huh?" Paulina said, looking confused.

"Danny and I got lucky," Sam admitted with a small smile. "I've been in love with him probably since the day we met. But that isn't always the way it works. If you haven't met your soul mate yet, then you just need to make sure you stick around long enough to find him." She looked sideways at Paulina. "He's out there. And once this war is over, you'll find him."

A slow smile touched Paulina's face. "I hope you're right," she said. Then suddenly, she started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sam asked, surprised.

Paulina shook her head, grinning. "It's just… Back before all this, I never would have expected to have a serious conversation with you about love. Much less be _jealous_ of you." She laughed again, and Sam couldn't help but join in.

"Yeah, well," she replied between breaths, "I never would have expected to have a serious conversation with you about _anything_." _Funny how things turned out,_ Sam wondered to herself. _Who'd have ever thought I'd come to see Paulina as a friend?_ Then Paulina yawned widely, and Sam nudged her on the arm. "You should get some sleep. Who knows if that heat will be back tomorrow?"

"Ugh, I don't even want to think about that…" Paulina said, yawning again. She rose to her feet. "'Night, Sam."

"'Night," Sam replied, as Paulina disappeared back into the house. She turned back to stare at the shield just as it flickered and faded. She waited for it to return to life again, but after a whole minute passed she realized with a jolt that it wasn't coming back – the last ghost shield was finally dead for good. Sam wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on her knees, a cold feeling of dread filling her tired body.

_Danny, where are you?_

-0-0-0-0-0-

Dark. Cold. Quiet. Those were the first words that came to Danny's mind as his senses made their sluggish return. He was lying on his back on something soft, and the space around him was wide and empty. It was a while before he could force his eyes open, and when he did there was hardly a difference in light. He couldn't see the walls or ceiling of the room he was in, but he was lying on a bed and was covered by a single, white blanket that gave off a sort of odd, ethereal glow. There was a candle on one end of the table at the foot of the bed, casting the room in a dim, orange light.

With a groan, Danny lifted his arms and used them to push himself into a sitting position, doing his best to ignore the dull throbbing in his head and the burning ache in his stomach and back. He shoved the blanket aside and saw that thick bandages had been wrapped around his otherwise bare torso – and that they were stained with blood.

He blinked a few times and stretched his sore limbs, his mind clearing from sleep. _Where am I?_ he wondered, trying to remember what had happened right before he'd lost consciousness. He stood up and noticed his shirt, shoes, and the Infi-map piled neatly on the table, so he sat back down and clumsily pulled the shoes on before picking up his shirt (which now boasted dark red stains on the front and back; he had a brief vision of his mother's face when she saw it and suddenly dreaded returning home). As he slid his arms into the sleeves he happened to glance down at his shoulder and jumped in alarm at the sight. The arrow wound from days before had completely healed, but the blackened spot around it had changed shape yet again, its edges growing straight and defined. Danny shuddered uneasily and pulled his shirt over his head and let it fall, blocking the dark spot from view. There was only one door in the room, so with a deep breath he stuffed the Infi-map in his pocket and crept toward it.

It led out into a dimly-lit hallway, so he chose an arbitrary direction and started walking. The movement was good for his tired body – it brought strength back to his limbs and cleared the dull headache behind his eyes. He remembered ending up in some sort of crystal forest, one he didn't recognize and was fairly certain he hadn't visited before. But where was he now? Someone must have found him, considering he was still alive and bandaged up to boot – but who? There were no windows in the hallway, so he couldn't be sure where he was. The walls were lined with strangely creepy photos of old, rich men (at least, Danny thought they looked like rich men) with elaborate candelabra hanging between them. Though it was modestly adorned, the house gave off a very high-society feel. And not only that, but it also seemed strangely familiar to Danny, though he couldn't place why. He knew he had never seen those odd pictures before, but there was something about the place that gave him a queer feeling of déjà vu.

At the end of the hall there was a large set of double doors stained a deep mahogany, decorated with golden handles and moldings. With nowhere else to go, Danny grabbed one of the handles and yanked open the door, stepping through the doorway. The room beyond was a gigantic library, with high shelves of books that towered toward the vaulted ceiling. It was unnaturally cold in the room, and Danny shivered as his breath came out in a pale, visible puff of smoke. He took three steps into the room and suddenly the door slammed closed behind him, making him flinch in surprise.

"You know, you really shouldn't go snooping around in someone else's house," a familiar voice spoke out from somewhere off to Danny's left, sounding amused. He snapped his gaze in its direction as a series of footsteps emanated from behind the third bookshelf from the center of the room. _No way…_ Danny thought, his body freezing up in shock. He knew that voice.

Sure enough, the footsteps grew louder until they turned the corner, and Danny was met with the unexpected sight of Vlad Masters.

"_Vlad?_" Danny sputtered in disbelief. Vlad was in his ghostly form of Vlad Plasmius, Danny's former arch-nemesis, but there was no mistaking his pointed hair, sharp fangs, and glowing cape. "W-What are—How did—Why are you—?" Before Danny could decide which question he wanted to ask most, a dagger of pain stabbed at his stomach and he doubled over with a jerk, grinding his teeth and grabbing at the front of his shirt with twitching fingers.

"Complete sentences, Daniel," Vlad said with a sigh, closing the book in his hands. "Honestly, what do they teach you kids in schools these days?" But when Danny raised his head to glare at Vlad, he saw unmasked concern in the eyes of his former foe and his retort died on his tongue. "At any rate, you shouldn't be running around all willy-nilly just yet. Come and sit down, and I may be willing to answer a question or two." He turned and headed for the back of the library, and Danny was forced to follow him. Before long they came upon a small sitting area which offered a few small tables and large, comfortable chairs. Danny dropped heavily into one of them, trying to ignore the now constant throbbing in his lower torso. Vlad took a seat and re-opened his book, examining its pages.

"So you survived that trip into space three years ago after all?" Danny asked after a moment of silence during which Vlad continued to read his book innocently.

"Actually, no," Vlad replied, his voice suddenly sounding bitter. "Why don't you try getting hit by a speeding asteroid made entirely of ectoranium and we'll see how you turn out, hm?"

"Wait, but then…" Danny's voice trailed off as he finally understood what Vlad was getting at. He _hadn't_ survived, which meant that he wasn't only half-ghost anymore. He was the real thing. "So… we're still in the—"

"Ghost Zone, yes," Vlad confirmed, his eyes still never leaving the book. "When I came here I built this mansion to resemble the one I owned back in Wisconsin." _So that's why I thought it was familiar,_ Danny realized. "Considering my second one has been commandeered…" he added grimly.

"So it was you that saved me," Danny said, eyeing Vlad incredulously. "Why?"

"Well you did just sort of show up on my property," he pointed out matter-of-factly. "You dropped out of the sky, practically bleeding to death. What was I supposed to do?" Danny could tell Vlad was trying to sound indifferent, but something in his voice gave away his unease. "I'd assumed you'd had a run-in with the Ghost King and that Crithstain fellow, the ones who've _acquired_ my house. Can't say I approve of the way they're doing things." He wrinkled his nose as if tasting something disgusting.

"That means… you know about the war," Danny realized. "And everything that's been happening."

Vlad rolled his eyes. "Please, Daniel, just because I'm dead doesn't mean I'm completely out of touch."

"But I don't understand," Danny persisted, anger rising. "Why haven't you left the Ghost Zone? Why stay cooped up here when the rest of civilization is fighting for their lives? Or… afterlives," he added slightly awkwardly.

"I've never been a big fan of fighting," Vlad argued with a sigh. "I'm more of a strategy man. Besides, what happens in the outside world no longer matters to me."

"Whatever Crithstain's planning, it's not just gonna affect the human world," Danny explained impatiently. "He said the human world and Ghost Zone would both have to be ready."

"Ready for what?" Vlad asked absently, sounding indifferent.

"I don't know!" Danny shouted, annoyed at Vlad's tone and the fact that he was _still reading that book_.

Vlad remained silent for a long moment, flipping a page and continuing to stare down at the book. "I suppose it doesn't matter," he finally said calmly. "I'm only staying here because I have nowhere else to go. They can do what they want."

Danny shook his head in wonder. "I don't believe this," he said. "How can you have sunk so far? Are you really just willing to sit here and wait for your existence to end? That's… pathetic."

"And what would you do, Daniel?" Vlad countered, still looking down but now speaking with the smallest bit of edge to his voice. "If you had died tonight and become a full ghost – just like me, just like all the ones you battle day in and day out. What would you do?"

Danny got to his feet, his answer on his tongue before he needed time to consider it. "I would fight," he said in a steely voice. "Not for me, but for everyone else. If there was still a way to bring an end to all this… suffering and heartache, I wouldn't forgive myself unless I tried."

This time the silence was long and heavy. Vlad slowly closed the book and sighed deeply, before at last raising his face and meeting Danny's determined glare. His eyes were old and tired, missing all of the fiery venom they used to possess. Where he once was evil and intimidating, he was now sad – almost pitiful. Ironically, he seemed more human now as a ghost than he ever had in life. "That's the difference between you and me, Danny," he admitted solemnly. "You have people to protect. I… I have no one. There's nothing waiting for me in the human world, and I have no reason to return."

Vlad's expression and tone had a numbing effect on Danny's mood, calming his anger almost instantly. He hated to admit it, but he felt sorry for Vlad. He didn't deserve to feel that way. No one did. "That's not true," he protested. "You were mayor of Amity Park once, weren't you? Selfish reasons or not, the city had _belonged_ to you. That connection's still there, somewhere. Don't you feel anything for them? How would you feel if it all just disappeared? All the people that supported you, followed you, listened to you…" He let his voice drop to just above a whisper as he said, "…What about my parents?" Vlad's ears perked up and his fingers twitched, but he said nothing. "Weren't you their friend? If you had a chance to save them… would you?"

Vlad didn't answer. He only lowered his head further, eyes sliding closed. Realizing the conversation was over, Danny sighed in defeat. He changed wordlessly to his ghost form (and was glad when the aches in his body faded considerably). "I have to go," he said evenly, his voice echoing off the high library walls. "I still have things I need to do. I hope you realize that… there are still things you need to do, too." With that, he glided into the air and left Vlad alone once again.

Once outside, Danny pulled out the Infi-map and yanked it open, pointing to his parents' house and gripping the scroll tightly. In an instant he was off, flying at top speed through the Ghost Zone. He thought almost immediately of Frostbite and Amorpho and hoped that somehow they had made it out safely and returned home. Part of him knew that was highly unlikely, but still he refused to give up hope.

In a matter of minutes the map began to slow and Danny realized the familiar Ghost Portal was in sight. Coming to a halt, he opened it from the inside and glided through, rolling up the map as he went. No sooner had he stepped foot in the lab, however, than a glowing ghost net suddenly appeared in front of him, wrapping around his body before he could say a word.

"INTRUDER!" Valerie's voice called urgently from inside the room, and the sound of many hurried footsteps quickly followed. "Alright, ghost, I wanna know how you found—"

"Valerie, it's me!" Danny interrupted her, doing his best to disentangle his limbs inside the net.

Valerie gasped. "_Danny?_" she realized at last. She hurriedly pressed a button on her wristband and the net unhinged itself, retreating back into her belt.

"If that's your idea of a welcome home party, I respectfully decline the invitation," Danny said as he climbed shakily to his feet. Valerie laughed and rushed toward him, throwing her arms around him.

"We thought you were—!" She broke off suddenly, apparently deciding the rest of the sentence was unnecessary.

Danny put on a grim smile as she let go of him. "I almost was," he admitted. Behind Valerie he could see Damon, Youngblood, Johnny 13, and Kitten gathering around.

"Did someone say 'Danny'?" a frantic voice called from the basement stairs just as Maddie darted around the corner. She caught sight of her son and instantly her eyes filled with tears. "Danny!" she breathed, running up to him and hugging him tightly. "What were you thinking, going into their base like that? You could have at least told us first! Your father and I have been worried sick!"

"Sorry, Mom," Danny apologized meekly. "I… wasn't thinking. You're right, I shouldn't have been so stupid."

Maddie backed up suddenly, holding Danny at arm's length and eyeing him suspiciously. "You never admit you were wrong that quickly…" she pointed out. "What happened there?"

"Where are Frostbite and Amorpho?" Damon asked suddenly. "Didn't they go with you?"

Danny's throat tightened. "You mean… they're not here?" Everyone looked at each other anxiously, confirming Danny's fears. "Oh, man…" he muttered, running a hand through his white hair.

"Danny, what happened?" Maddie asked again.

He explained to them briefly how they'd gotten in to see Crithstain, and some of what he'd learned from the ghost. "After that, all hell broke loose," he said miserably. "I was fighting Pariah Dark, but… I lost. Frostbite and Amorpho, they… I had to leave them there. I didn't want to—they forced me, and I—"

"It's alright, Danny, we understand," his mother insisted, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm gonna go look for them," he decided suddenly, shrugging Maddie off and picking up the map from where he'd dropped it after being attacked by Valerie's ghost net.

"No, you are _not_," Maddie scolded sternly, grabbing his arm with a firm grip.

Danny rounded on her desperately. "It's my fault if something happened to them," he argued. "If I'd thought it through before running off like that… If I hadn't been such an _idiot_, then this would never have happened."

"Shorty and I can go take a look around," Johnny suggested, jabbing a thumb at Youngblood, who looked startled but didn't disagree.

Kitten latched herself onto Johnny's arm, looking scared. "Johnny…" she said in a nervous voice.

"_No one _is going," Maddie said firmly, glaring at them all. "We have to remember the code, which clearly states that if anyone is lost or left behind on a mission through the Ghost Zone, we are not to go back for them. It was created to keep casualties down. Everyone who goes into the Zone understands this rule."

"Yeah, but…" Danny went on impatiently, "that doesn't mean I can just forget about my own allies… my friends. I can't abandon them."

"Do you really think they would want you to go back?" his mother asked, still holding onto him protectively. Danny remembered with a jolt what Frostbite had said to him before sending him away. _'Remember the code, Danny. Your friends need you – I will _not_ let you die here.'_ "Those two know how important you are, Danny," Maddie went on almost solemnly. "And I'm not just saying that because I'm your mother. You have things to do here, people to protect."

"Vlad said the same thing," Danny recalled without thinking.

Maddie looked stunned. "Vlad?" she repeated.

_Whoops…_ "I… met Vlad in the Ghost Zone, after I escaped the ghosts," he explained.

"So he's alright?" his mother asked. Danny looked her in the eyes and shook his head, and realization dawned on her face. "Oh, right…"she muttered, a strange look of regret in her eyes. "But what were you doing there? Why didn't you come straight back here?"

Danny hesitated, unsure how to explain without causing his mother to lock him up and never allow him to leave her sight again. "After I fought Pariah Dark, I couldn't fly on my own. Frostbite forced me to take the Infi-map and told it to 'go somewhere safe'. It must have picked the closest safe place – and that just happened to be Vlad's new home." He took a heavy breath, lowering his eyes. "He saved my life."

More than one person around the room looked startled at this news. "He did?" Maddie asked. Then suddenly her eyes narrowed as they travelled swiftly from his head to his feet. "How badly were you hurt?"

He laughed nervously. "Uh…"

Valerie's eyes widened and she pointed a finger at him. "A few minutes ago… You said you almost died."

Danny glared at Valerie. "I might have been exaggerating a bit," he said as innocently as he could. _Whoops,_ he thought again. _I really need to start watching what I say…_

"Let me see," Maddie ordered, hands on her hips. With a defeated sort of sigh, Danny changed back to human form, regretting it at once due to both the increased soreness in his body and the horrified look on his mother's face.

"I know it looks bad," he admitted, indicating the dried blood on his shirt, "but I'm fine now, really." He smiled reassuringly, but it changed quickly to a grimace as his stomach tightened painfully, effectively disproving his words.

"Oh, Danny," Maddie sighed, a look of motherly concern on her face as she lifted his shirt to inspect the wound beneath it. She touched the bandages, poking her finger across them, until she struck the cut and Danny cringed, grunting through gritted teeth. "Bed," she commanded him, her voice firm but her expression worried. "Now." Realizing how tired he was, Danny didn't argue. Getting some sleep and forgetting about everything that had happened for a while would be good for him, he told himself.

As he passed by the computer cluster, he noticed the time – just past 1:30 AM. He'd been gone for almost twelve hours. _No wonder everyone was so worried…_ Danny couldn't help but think. But more than that, he couldn't keep from thinking of Amorpho and Frostbite. They had been missing for just as long. And as much as he hated to admit it, part of him knew the truth – that they were probably never coming back.

Danny's throat tightened in regret. _What have I done?_

-0-0-0-0-0-

It had to have been at least an hour since Paulina had gone inside, and still Sam couldn't bring herself to follow. When the shield had fallen, it had taken with it the last tiny bit of light, and she had felt as though the sounds from the battlefield had grown louder in the increased darkness. So inexplicably she had stayed, watching and listening, eyes staring blankly at the inky blackness around her. The view seemed wrong somehow without the familiar film of green ecto-energy separating her from the outside world. It gave her a strange feeling of loneliness and vulnerability, like when she was little and her parents would turn off her nightlight before they went to bed. Her room had been large enough that in the darkness, the corners were swallowed by shadows so dense that her tiny eyes would look into their depths and envision all manner of frightening things that could be lurking out of sight. She used to pull her blankets up over her head and tell herself that if she could hide in shadow as well, then nothing out there could find her. If only things were that simple now – but after so long, so much had changed, and she was finding it harder and harder every day to feel safe.

Suddenly, Sam heard a muffled crash from inside the house, not far from the door. She jumped in surprise and spun around, wondering what could have happened. It was probably nothing, she told herself, but she decided she may as well check it out to distract herself from her thoughts for a little while. It would at least give her something to do. So with a beleaguered sigh she rose to her feet and pulled open the door.

No sooner had she stepped over the threshold than she heard a low, tired groan coming from near the back of the room. Sam felt her stomach twist in startled concern – she recognized the voice easily.

"Danny?" she called, eyes gliding over the room and finally spotting him on his hands and knees across the room, crouching beside an overturned end table. She hurried toward him, not bothering to close the front door in her haste. He shoved himself upright onto his knees and looked at her through clouded, half-lidded eyes.

"Sam?" he recognized her, a light smile appearing on his face.

She let out a heavy sigh, relief filling every inch of her. "You're alive," she breathed, grinning at him. He laughed, but when his voice broke into a strangled gasp Sam felt the smile vanish from her face. She was about to ask what was wrong when her eyes dropped to his stomach and her words died on her tongue. Her insides flipped unpleasantly at the sight of the blood staining his shirt. "What happened? Are you—?"

"I'm alright," he cut her off. "Just tired. I was on my way to the med center to rest, actually."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "It must be bad if you're willing to sit out," she said wryly, offering a small smile in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Ha, ha," Danny said sarcastically. He placed a hand on the upturned table (which Sam realized he must have knocked over when he'd fallen, thus resulting in the crash she'd heard from outside) and used it to pull himself to his feet. It didn't last long, however, as he lost his balance almost instantly and was back on his knees before he could take a step, his face screwed up in pain and exhaustion.

"Here, let me help," Sam said worriedly, taking Danny's arm and hanging it around her shoulders. As she reached her hand around his back she noticed with a pang that there was a second deep red stain on the back of his shirt, nearly identical in size to the other. "You gonna tell me what happened?" she asked uneasily as she pulled him to his feet, letting him lean his weight against her. "They told me where you went when I got back yesterday. I'm guessing your little peace summit didn't go as planned."

Danny snorted ruefully. "You kidding? It was actually my plan to get impaled on Pariah Dark's sword from the beginning. Things have been awfully dull lately. I thought my life could use a little more excitement, you know?"

Sam bit her lip, not having missed his use of the word 'impaled'. Sarcasm or no, she knew there was some truth to what he was saying. As they made their way through the house toward the back door, Danny told Sam what had happened since he'd left – from his talk with Crithstain, to the disastrous battle against Pariah Dark and Walker's guards, to Frostbite's sending him away with the Infi-map. When he mentioned that it was Vlad who'd found and saved him, Sam was stunned. She hadn't known Vlad was still around – alive or dead. But she supposed it didn't matter anymore. If he had saved Danny's life and then let him go, how could she hate him, really?

He was trying not to let it on, but Sam could tell Danny hated himself for leaving Team Beta behind. "It's not your fault, you know," she pointed out carefully once they'd reached the medical center and he'd collapsed onto an empty bed.

"I never said it was," he countered, sounding uncertain. He seemed to know exactly what she was referring to.

"You didn't have to," Sam said with a wry smile. "I know you, Danny. So before you go doing something stupid, just listen to me, okay? Beta _wanted_ to help you. Any time we go into the Ghost Zone nowadays, there's always a chance of not coming back. All the intel teams understand that. They wouldn't blame you, and you shouldn't either."

"I know…" he muttered. "You're right." She couldn't help but notice that regardless of what he said, he didn't sound any less guilty.

Sam sighed, squeezing Danny's fingers in hers briefly. "Just get some rest, okay?" she whispered. He smiled, though his eyes had already closed, and she couldn't help but add silently, _You need it._

* * *

So congrats to everyone who guessed it was Vlad at the end of the last chapter. I wasn't originally gonna write him into this story when I was first planning it, but the opportunity was too good when I got here and I couldn't pass it up. I think he's a great character - maybe we'll see more of him later...? Haha ;)

Alrighty! I'll probably get Part 2 of this day up later this week. 'Til then, how 'bout shootin' me a review? I'm gonna try to be better about replying to them promptly in the future :) heh heh

-oMM


	9. November 5, Part II - Black

Hi again! The last chapter wasn't very eventful, so I'm back sort of early with the second part of November 5th. There isn't much action in this one, but it's very important, so let's get to it, shall we?

Enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 5-**_

_**-Part II: Black-**_

When Danny woke later that day, he was glad to realize the rest had done him good. Already the wound in his abdomen had almost healed, though he was still a bit sore. He got up and quickly changed clothes, noticing that it was still dark outside. _Huh… Must not have slept that long after all,_ he thought vaguely, until another possibility hit him. _Unless I was out all day… Aw, man…_

He left the medical center and made his way through the house and toward the basement, pausing in the kitchen to make himself some Fenton toast. When he glanced at the clock by the stove, he saw that it was just after 12:00 PM – and almost choked on a mouthful of toast in result. There was no way it should be that dark at 12:00 PM.

Danny dropped the half-eaten slice of toast shaped like his dad and dashed out of the kitchen and into the living room. He shot a look at the clock on the back wall just to confirm that it read the same time before yanking open the front door and jumping down the stoop, skidding to a halt on the street corner.

The first thing he took note of was the absence of the ghost shield – apparently it had finally failed sometime after he'd left the previous day. Immediately after that, however, he saw what should have been the daytime sky covered in the darkest clouds he had ever seen. They were black as pitch, with just the slightest gray highlighting around the edges to give them shape. They blocked out the sun completely, so that everything on the ground was covered in the same shade of darkness and nothing cast even the dimmest shadow. On the upside, the temperature had dropped almost back to normal levels, but the clouds had a heavy feeling of foreboding and made Danny strangely uneasy as he watched them roll lazily by.

Clucking his tongue, Danny spun away from the dark sky and went back into the house, this time heading straight for the basement stairs. The lab was littered with the usual suspects going about their daily business, though he could sense the same sort of nervousness that he'd felt when he was outside.

"Danny!" a loud voice greeted him. Danny spun to his right to see his father collecting supplies into his broad arms. "Good to see you up and about, son. Feeling better?"

"Yeah, actually," he answered with a smile. "A lot better. Hey, have you been outside?"

Jack frowned, suddenly looking serious. "Yeah, strange weather we're having. Hope there's not a storm coming. Maybe that weather ghost is at it again."

"Yeah…" Danny agreed somewhat uncertainly. He supposed he couldn't rule Vortex out, but somehow it just didn't feel like his work. And even if it was, then why now?

As Jack turned back to his work, Danny wandered absently toward the computer cluster, where Tucker's team was hard at work as usual. "So we lost the shield, huh?" he said to them.

"Huh?" Tucker muttered, blinking and looking up at Danny. "Oh… Oh, yeah. Last night it finally clocked out. But I'm really close, don't worry."

Danny couldn't help but notice that Tucker seemed distracted. _Maybe it's just this weird storm…_ "Hey, is something wrong?"

Tucker hesitated, eyes darting back and forth as though reading an invisible book at top speed. When he finally turned to Danny, he looked troubled. "It's just… This sequence of events, it's just too—"

"Danny!" a voice from the stairs cut him off. Both boys turned in time to see Sam step into the lab, a frantic look on her face. "Oh, good, you're here—You'd better get up here. We've got a problem."

"Hold that thought, Tuck," Danny said before following Sam back up the stairs and into the kitchen. She led him into the living room just as Jazz and Kwan stumbled in through the front door supporting Dash between them. "What happened?" he demanded when he took in Dash's wounded and weakened state.

"Me and Kwan snuck into the enemy base," Dash explained breathlessly as he leaned against the nearest chair.

"You _what?_" Danny exclaimed, surprised.

"The ghosts are all sort of on edge about this darkness," Kwan said. "We thought we could use their confusion."

"We hid by a side door and heard voices," Dash went on. "It was Crithstain and the Ghost King. They were in some sort of lab. When we looked in the window we saw them forging some kind of weapon – it looked like a giant scythe."

"They were talking about something that would happen 'in three days'," Kwan took over again. He looked at Danny with a strange mixture of confusion and regret in his eyes. "Crithstain said your name. Something about you… making the 'right decision'. He seemed… excited, I think. It was kind of creepy."

"Then he told the Ghost King to 'dispose of the visitors'," Dash said bitterly. "Turns out he knew we were there the whole time."

"We managed to get out, thanks to the darkness, but… well…" Kwan waved a hand at Dash, who grunted in reply.

"I don't know what he's planning," Dash said, raising his eyes to look at Danny, "but you'd better be careful, Fenton, 'cause it looks like it involves you."

As Kwan took Dash to the medical center, Sam, Jazz, and Danny exchanged uneasy looks. If Crithstain was making a weapon, that meant he was going to fight. But what Danny still didn't understand was why he was doing all the rest of it. He'd said that the world was being prepared – but for what? How could any of these events prepare them for something? And where did Danny come into Crithstain's plans? Every answer they got only seemed to raise more questions.

Just then, Mikey came sprinting into the living room. "You guys better come back to the lab," he said, slightly out of breath. "Tucker's almost found an answer to the shield problem!" All three looked at each other with wide eyes before following Mikey in a rush back down the basement stairs.

When they reached the computer cluster, Tucker was hunched over his station, fingers rapidly at work on the keyboard. A 3-D model was rotating on his screen, and words and numbers of code were flying past it. Tucker's eyes were glued to the model, watching the text unblinkingly. Everyone in the lab remained silent as many of them came to stand around him. They watched for a few minutes, until Sam said uncertainly, "What's he doing—?"

"Got it!" Tucker shouted at last, standing up so fast he knocked his chair over in the process. Danny was about to congratulate him when all of a sudden, the power went out, throwing them all into absolute darkness.

At once a chorus of voices sounded in anger and surprise. "Don't worry, everyone," Jack shouted above the din. "I'm sure the generators will kick in any second now." As if on cue, most of the equipment and a few of the lights whirred back to life, filling the lab with the familiar humming sound that they had all become accustomed to. Jack frowned at the lights that remained off and scratched his head. He muttered something about 'fixing that other generator' before heading to the stairs and disappearing from sight. Danny turned back to Tucker, who was staring blankly at his computer screen as the processor rebooted.

"Did that set you back?" Valerie asked nervously.

"I had it…" he muttered, shaking his head. "I'm sure I can remember the formula – or at least how I got to it," he assured them after a moment. "It'll just take a little time. I'll have it back by the end of the day." He paused before adding, "So long as we don't lose power again, anyway."

Many of them breathed a sigh of relief. "Way to go, Tucker," Sam congratulated him. "You may have just saved our hides."

"Wait a minute," Danny interjected, something triggering his memory. "I never told you guys – Crithstain scrapped the Anti-Shield days ago. Whatever it is he's planning, it's got nothing to do with the shield anymore."

"But… then what could it be?" Sam wondered with a frown. When she glanced at Tucker and saw his eyes widen, she looked puzzled and asked him, "What is it?"

He looked at Danny and answered in a strained voice, "Remember what I was saying before you went upstairs? Well… I know it's a stretch, and it may not even be possible, but… there's only one other place I've ever heard of a similar sequence of events happening at once." He righted his chair and sat back down in it, before pulling his backpack out from under the table and unzipping one of the pockets. To everyone's obvious surprise, he pulled out an old, worn Bible and flipped it open to somewhere near the end. "I've been reading it and rereading it over the last few days and… unfortunately, it seems to fit."

Jazz looked worried at his words. "I've studied psychological interpretations of certain Biblical events in the past," she said carefully. "…Including the so-called 'End of the World'."

"End of the world?" Danny repeated incredulously.

Jazz glanced at the ceiling, looking thoughtful. "Supposedly, there are seven Final Plagues that lead up to the predestined Apocalypse." She dropped her eyes to look at Tucker fearfully. "You don't think…?"

Tucker bit his lip, his eyes scanning the pages of the book. "The oceans dying, the rivers turning to blood, the burning heat, the darkness… It's all right here. At first I tried to convince myself it was just a coincidence, but… I'm not so sure anymore."

Sam took the Bible from Tucker and skimmed over the passage. "It says the first plague is the coming of the Antichrist…" she pointed out with a frown. "But… if that happened, we would know, wouldn't we?"

With a grim expression, Tucker turned back to his computer and pulled up a program. He typed Crithstain's name into it and pressed a key, and they all watched as the letters rearranged themselves on the screen to read a very different word.

'ANTICHRIST'.

The lab was so silent that the dull hum of the equipment seemed almost deafening. Danny couldn't believe what Tucker and Jazz were saying. The End of the World? Stuff like that didn't happen in real life, did it? As he thought back on the events of the past few days, he remembered how confused and unsure the ordeal had made him. He couldn't have even begun to understand how or why Crithstain had been doing the things he was. Now here was a possible answer to it all, staring him in the face – and he wanted nothing more than to believe it was wrong.

After a while, Damon cleared his throat and asked in a quiet voice, "So what plagues are left?"

"The sixth is the drying of the rivers and oceans," Tucker explained, "and the seventh is the great earthquake, when all the cities split and fall. …The Earth's last day."

"Well, is there any way to stop it?" Sam asked in a slightly frantic voice, setting the Bible back down on the table. "I mean… It can't be too late, can it? We can't just give up."

Tucker hesitated. "The Battle of Armageddon," he said in an uneasy voice. "It's the final stand between good and evil. It takes place on the morning after the seventh plague. It starts at midnight, and ends before sunrise – the sunrise that brings about either the saving or destruction of the world. It's supposed to be between the Antichrist and a human – a dweller of the Earth. It's a sort of… 'winner-take-all' kind of deal; if the human – the good side – wins, then the world is spared, having proven that there's still good left in it. But if they fail, and if evil wins, then good will cease to exist. We all disappear. The world ends."

The group was silent for a moment while they all took in this information. "How are we supposed to choose who has to fight?" Valerie asked.

Tucker shook his head. "We don't," he replied. "The Antichrist does. At some point between his coming and the seventh plague, he'll mark the one who's supposed to participate in the battle with him."

Danny froze suddenly, his insides twisting violently and threatening to make him sick. He barely heard Sam ask, "What kind of mark would it be?"

"Probably something religion-related," Tucker guessed, rubbing the back of his neck, "to mark the person as the representative of good."

Danny swallowed hard, almost choking on his own breath. "Something like this?" he said aloud, his voice sounding strained and quiet. He yanked the collar of his shirt down to reveal the blackened mark on his shoulder from Crithstain's arrow, still in the defined shape he'd noticed when he'd woken in Vlad's home in the Ghost Zone – the shape of an elaborate, pointed cross.

There was an audible gasp around the room. Tucker's eyes grew bigger than Danny could ever remember seeing them as he muttered in disbelief, "Yeah, that'd probably do it."

"So it wasn't poison after all?" Jazz wondered absently, fear in her eyes.

Sam blinked and rounded on Jazz. "What 'poison'?" she asked. Jazz let out a nervous laugh, but didn't go into any more detail. Sam turned back to Tucker and said firmly, "There has to be another way. Danny can't fight him alone."

"We're messing with forces beyond our control," Tucker pointed out. "I don't think there's anything we can do."

"What if he doesn't go?" Jazz suggested.

"Then Crithstain wins," Tucker said gravely. "The Battle of Armageddon is our last and only hope."

Danny hated to admit it, but as frightening as this explanation was, it actually made sense. It explained everything Crithstain had said since his appearance – about the worlds being prepared, his heralding the end of their suffering, his power being beyond their understanding, their inability to stop what was happening, even the references to the 'good fight' he would participate in. It answered every question that they'd been wracking their brains to solve over the past few days, but instead of relief it only brought more anxiety and fear.

"We should tell everyone about this," Damon said. "They need to know in case… you know…" As he led everyone toward the stairs, Danny grabbed Tucker's shoulder and hung back, away from the small crowd. Sam noticed them and stayed as well.

"Where's this battle supposed to take place?" Danny asked Tucker in a low voice when he was sure the others were out of earshot.

"Danny, you're not thinking of actually fighting him, are you?" Sam whispered harshly.

"What choice do I have?" he replied wearily. "If there's even the smallest chance of saving all those people, I have to take it."

"Legend says it happens in Tel Megiddo, Israel," Tucker told them. "It's a hill so high in a valley so low that it's said to breach the gap between heaven and hell."

"I should be able to get there through the Ghost Zone if I take the Infi-map," Danny decided, trying to sound more sure of himself than he actually was. Honestly, he was terrified. The End of the World wasn't something he would have ever thought would happen in his lifetime – let alone that he would be the one responsible for saving it. But here he was, promised to a final battle to the death against the strongest being he'd ever met for the fate of the entire Earth. That wasn't news anyone could take lightly. But at the same time, he knew that even if the chance was small, it was there. If there was a way to stop this death and destruction from happening, then some part of him knew that he had to do whatever it took.

"You sure about this, man?" Tucker asked uncertainly, wringing his hands together.

Danny took a deep breath, trying to steady his racing heartbeat. "No," he answered truthfully. "But you said it yourself, right? This battle's the only chance we've got."

"You guys coming?" Jazz's voice called from the top of the stairs. Danny shot Sam and Tucker a reassuring smile, before all three headed for the doorway.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"You're saying… the world is ending?"

"I know it's a lot to take in," Tucker called out over the battlefield. "We don't want to believe it any more than you do. But it's the truth."

After the meeting in the lab at Fenton Works, they had all decided to split into teams and head out to each battle front to explain what they'd discovered in hopes that it would stop the fighting. Luckily, Danny, Sam, and Tucker were able to get everyone – humans and ghosts – to at least stop and listen to them. Tucker had explained what he knew to mixed reactions from the crowd. Many people were in shock, while others seemed to have guessed already. The ghosts were struck with confusion over the fact that Crithstain had brought this on – they had all thought he was there to help them, after all. The realization that his intent all along was their destruction as well as the humans' was not taken well.

"Maybe if we take out Crithstain, we can stop this," Vortex suggested, though he sounded vaguely uncertain.

"You wanna fight that guy? Be my guest," Ember scoffed in reply. "You know what he's capable of. Count me out." A few other ghosts murmured their assent.

"Well, it's that or lie down and be destroyed," Spectra pointed out. "What have we got to lose?"

"Hold on a minute!" Tucker shouted as they started to argue. "There's still a chance to stop it from happening. Danny has to fight Crithstain in three days. If he wins, the world is saved."

"Why the ghost child?" Technus asked sharply, pointing a finger at Danny. "Wouldn't it make sense to send one of us instead?"

Sam crossed her arms and glared at the ghosts. "Danny's beaten just about all of you in the past. Why shouldn't it be him?"

"Look, it wasn't my decision," Danny said adamantly before another argument could start. "It was Crithstain's. And if I don't go, we lose – plain and simple. You want to save the world? This is our only chance."

Most of the human army seemed alright with this decision, asserting that if anyone could do it, Danny could and wishing him luck and cheering that the world might not end after all. To Danny's slight surprise, even a lot of the ghosts seemed to accept it. Just when he was thinking that maybe things would turn out alright, Skulker called out, "It had to be this war that brought this on. You humans should have bowed to us as superiors long ago. Then none of this would have happened."

"Maybe you ghosts should have stayed in the Ghost Zone where you belong!" someone else shouted in response. Despite Danny, Sam, and Tucker's best efforts to keep everyone calm, the fighting had broken out again in no time.

"Let's get out of here," Tucker said glumly. "Let them fight. Maybe by the time this is all over they'll have realized how pointless it is now." With heavy sighs, the three left the battlefield and headed back toward Fenton Works.

As soon as they entered the house, Danny was bull-rushed by his crying mother, who threw her arms around him and sobbed into his shoulder, nearly knocking him off his feet. "How could this have happened?" she said miserably. "You're so young! And now the weight of the entire world's been forced on your shoulders… It just isn't _fair!_"

Danny swallowed awkwardly, not sure what to say. He touched Maddie's shoulders and carefully eased her away from him, offering her a small but encouraging smile. He glanced around the room at his parents, as well as Sam's and Tucker's, at Damon and Valerie, and at Jazz. "Come on, why's everybody look so down?" he asked them all in a light voice, taking in their troubled expressions. "We still have a chance, right? How about we stop acting like the world's already ended and focus on what's happening now – instead of what could or couldn't happen in a few days?"

Gradually, everyone started to smile and look a bit less afraid. Jazz shot Danny a knowing grin, and he remembered their conversation a couple of days ago about being strong for other people. "I guess… I'll get back to work on recovering the shield data," Tucker offered, strength in his voice. "We're gonna need it if the ghosts get any closer."

Maddie dried her eyes on the back of her hand as Tucker disappeared from the room. "And we'll get back to the op center and spread the news to the world. Everyone will know what exactly is going on – and that we're going to stop it."

"We'll help you," Pamela said at once, and she and her husband (as well as Tucker's parents) followed Jack and Maddie to the chute.

"It's back to the security monitors for me," Damon said, rubbing his hands together. "With that shield gone, we're keeping a close eye on ghost activity. We'll let you know if anything turns up."

Jazz turned to Valerie and said, "Back to the front line?"

"Back to the front line," Valerie agreed with a grin.

"I'll come with you," Danny offered as the girls headed for the door. He halted, however, when Sam wrapped her fingers around his arm.

"Hang on just a second?" she asked. Danny spun around and told Jazz and Valerie to go ahead without him, before facing Sam and raising his eyebrows. She let go of him and sighed heavily. "Are you really okay with this? You're not to blame for this war – you shouldn't have to be the one to save everyone. If you go through with it… you know what it could mean."

_That if I go to this battle, I probably won't come back?_ Danny thought to himself, though he was sure she was thinking the same thing. "Yeah, I am," he told her honestly. She studied his eyes suspiciously and he could tell she was searching for something that would tell her he was lying, but after a minute she breathed out slowly and her expression softened. She knew he was telling the truth. "I won't say I'm not afraid, but I want to do it." He wandered absently to the window and looked out at the dark sky, thinking back. "Remember the first time we met Pariah Dark, when he tried to take over the world?"

Sam chuckled. "How could I forget? He moved the whole city into the Ghost Zone."

Danny grinned and turned back around to face her. "Before I stole my dad's Ecto-Skeleton and went to fight him myself, remember what I told you guys?"

"That it wouldn't always be as easy as shoving the Box Ghost into the Fenton Thermos?" she suggested in a light voice.

Danny laughed. "Before that."

Sam's eyes grew serious and she lowered her gaze with a sigh. "That it wasn't your fault, but it _was_ your responsibility," she answered.

"Exactly," he confirmed. "I may not have started this war, and I didn't ask for it to end this way, either. But if I'm the only one with a chance to stop it, then I have the responsibility to take that chance. The world is worth it, don't you think?"

Sam fixed him with a pointed look and placed her hands on her hips. "Sometimes I wish you weren't such a goody two-shoes, you know?"

"Hey!" Danny said defensively, putting on a mock glare. Sam laughed and punched him on the arm. "Just trust me, okay?" he added seriously after a moment.

She looked into his eyes for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "Always."

* * *

Well, there it is. Now everybody knows more or less what's going on. I made up/changed a bit of the Bible stuff, but that's because I didn't want this to be a Bible story and I needed to take some artistic license to put into motion the things I've got planned for the end of this story. Trust me, it's gonna be good *shifty-eyes* haha.

Reviews fuel faster updates! Later, taters!

-oMM


	10. November 6

Hey gang! Thanks to everybody who read/reviewed the last chapter. We're getting near the end of this now! Only three more after this one. This is also the shortest chapter, so I'll make sure to get the next one up in another day or two, since the next one's pretty exciting.

Here we go!

* * *

_**-November 6-**_

"You finished the blueprint for the new shield?"

Tucker spun in his chair to face Danny and Sam, grinning as he rolled up a long sheet of paper. "Sure did," he affirmed. "I'm taking it to your parents now to review so we can start construction."

"Excellent," Sam went on as Danny too congratulated Tucker and his team. "Good luck."

"Thanks, guys," Tucker said. "I'll see you later."

As he disappeared up the stairs, Danny and Sam began to gather some equipment, planning to head out to the battlefield and try to see what they could do to stop the fighting. It had been a day since the news of the end of the world had spread, and only a few people had decided to leave the battlefield and spend what could be their last two days elsewhere, with the people they loved. However, as always, there were still those few headstrong individuals that convinced a great number of others to stay. And it certainly didn't help that many of the ghosts didn't seem to care what happened to the Earth either way.

Before they made it to the stairs, however, they were stopped by the sound of the Ghost Portal whizzing open. Danny spun around and felt his mouth drop open when Amorpho (in his usual, faceless form) glided lazily into the room as if he'd just gone out for a leisurely walk.

Danny ran toward the Portal and exclaimed, "You're okay!"

"Of course," Amorpho replied, straightening his hat.

"But I don't understand," Danny went on as Sam appeared at his side and a few other people gathered around. "How'd you get away? And… what took so long?"

"We managed to fight our way free not long after you left," Amorpho explained. "Oddly enough, they didn't seem too interested in us without you around. Then we had to make a bit of a detour on the way out." He turned and pointed an arm toward the Portal just as Frostbite emerged through it – but he wasn't alone. Mr. Lancer was with him.

"Mr. Lancer?" Sam said in shock, a hand covering her mouth.

"Oh, no…" Danny muttered in regret, feeling his stomach drop. In all that had happened, he'd completely forgotten that their former teacher had been taken captive by the ghost army. Mentally kicking himself, he went on, "I'm so sorry, Mr. Lancer, I should have come after—"

"It's alright, Danny," Lancer cut him off, holding up his hands. "I wasn't hurt in any way, really – just locked up and left alone. To be honest, I think they may have forgotten about me." He looked vaguely affronted at this possibility and Amorpho laughed out loud. "Anyway, I never wanted nor expected anyone to come for me. It's against the code, after all."

Danny growled in annoyance. "I'm starting to hate the stupid 'code'," he grumbled. "Who the heck came up with such a dumb rule, anyway?"

A small smile appeared on Mr. Lancer's face as he eyed his former student. "You did," he answered.

"Oh," Danny replied lamely. "Right." Almost everyone around them began to laugh.

"We would have returned sooner," Frostbite said after a moment, "but it took some time to traverse the Ghost Zone without the Infi-map. And we had to be sure we were not followed."

"Not to mention the random traffic jam of ecto-idiots flooding the Zone," Amorpho added. "What's been going on out here that's got the spooks so spooked?"

Danny exchanged glances with Sam, before in turn they explained everything they'd learned in the past day. Many of the ghosts must have thought they could escape the Apocalypse by hiding in the Ghost Zone, obviously forgetting that the two dimensions were tied together – two sides of the same coin. One couldn't exist without the other.

Before long, Tucker returned to the lab and was just as surprised and glad to see the three newcomers. After a brief second explanation, Tucker's expression grew serious. "The sixth plague has officially happened," he told them gravely. "While I was up in the op center with your parents, there was a radio transmission reporting that all the oceans and rivers around the world have dried up, leaving nothing but muddy trenches and pits. A lot of places are on red alert, but here it's not too big of a problem just yet."

Sam sighed heavily. "This is really happening, isn't it?" she asked rhetorically. Danny knew what she meant – the day had happened just as they'd been able to predict, which meant there was no denying it now. The End of the World was upon them.

"Hey… I need to go check on something," Danny said absently, before leaving the group and heading upstairs. He thought about going up to the op center to check in with his parents, but instead he found himself wandering toward the front door. Once outside, he jumped over the stairs and leaned against the house, a bit away from the door. He wasn't sure why he'd felt the sudden need to get out of the basement and away from everyone, but he was glad for once when no one followed him. As his eyes travelled out toward the people he knew were still fighting and the sounds of battle filled his ears, he couldn't help but think how removed the base had become. Inside, everyone was working more closely together and supporting each other constantly. Outside, the war raged on – maybe even more brutally than before. It was as though the news of the imminent end of the world had pushed many people over the edge, and now they chose to let their frustration out through fighting with more vigor and ferocity. To Danny and his friends and family, the war was like a thing of the past. He wished more than anything that everyone could just come together for what could likely be their last two days on earth, but part of him knew it wouldn't happen. Even when all seemed lost, people still couldn't put their anger aside for the greater good. How they could be so short-sighted, Danny couldn't understand.

Just then, the front door opened and Paulina walked out carrying an empty laundry basket. She didn't seem to see Danny right away, due to the darkness outside, so when he greeted her with a short, "Hey," she jumped a mile high and squealed in surprise. Danny laughed as she turned to face him, a hand over her heart.

"Danny!" she finally noticed him. "Don't _do_ that!"

"Sorry," he said with a grin, stepping away from the wall and leaning over the sloped stoop to the right of the front steps. "What'cha up to?"

"Just helping out Mr. and Mrs. Manson in the med center," she replied as she made her way to the clothesline beside the house and set her basket down. She reached up and proceeded to remove the sheets hanging over the line, folding them and piling them neatly in the laundry basket.

"How's Dash doing?" Danny asked.

"A lot better, actually," Paulina replied. "He's stable, but he's still asleep." As she folded the last sheet, she hung it over her arms and turned to glance out at the city. "He still doesn't know," she said quietly, and Danny didn't need to ask what she was referring to.

"Maybe it's better that way," he wondered, following her gaze over the darkened block. "He can sleep with no worries. …Well, maybe not _no _worries, but at least fewer than the rest of us." He smiled almost ruefully and tilted his head back, watching the clouds. "They say ignorance is bliss, right? I'm sure he's happier this way, at least for now."

Paulina turned and raised an eyebrow at him. "How can you be worried about Dash's happiness, after the history you guys have? You were never exactly friends."

Danny shrugged. "We're on the same side here, aren't we? Sure, we may not be friends, but we're allies. It's the same for you and Sam. You guys get along fine now, right?"

Paulina looked thoughtful for a moment, like she was remembering something. Then she smiled faintly and turned her eyes back out toward the street. "It's kind of funny," she said, "how even though it's based on destruction, war has a strange way of bringing people together." Danny considered this and realized that oddly enough, she had a point. Sure, war was a terrible thing that inarguably did more bad than good – but if even the smallest good could come from it, then it couldn't be for nothing, right? _Maybe there's a silver lining to all this, after all,_ he thought with a small smile. "Well," Paulina said brightly as she placed the last sheet into her basket and hefted it into her arms. "See you later, Danny." And with that, she disappeared back into the house.

Not ten minutes later, the door opened once again, and Danny was surprised to see Mr. Lancer emerge. "They told me I'd find you out here," he observed, taking a seat on the second step from the top.

"Mr. Lancer, I'm sorry I didn't try to find you," Danny said again, still feeling awful for forgetting about the teacher's plight. "It was just—with everything else going on, I just—"

"How many times do I have to tell you not to worry?" Lancer interrupted. "Then again, you never were the best of listeners…" He raised an eyebrow with a smirk, and Danny offered a shrug and a sheepish smile. "Like I said, I didn't expect anyone to come to my rescue – least of all you. To be honest, I was hoping you would forget about me."

"You were?" Danny asked, startled. "What do you mean?"

"I've known you for a long time, Mr. Fenton," the teacher explained, eyes distant as they surveyed the town. "And while never being one of my… better students, you were always one of my favorites."

"You're kidding, right?" Danny scoffed in disbelief. "I thought you hated me."

"Maybe that's how it came across," Mr. Lancer went on, "but I only pushed you harder because I saw potential in you. I know you're a bright kid, Danny, and obviously a good person. You've been able to lead our side in this war, young as you are – it's your optimism and strength that have kept everyone going for so long. But sometimes that heart of yours can be your downfall." He paused and rubbed his fingers against his temples, as if nursing a headache. "I had hoped you would forget me because I knew that if you didn't, you would try and stage a rescue, putting yourself in danger in the process. I was of no interest to the ghosts, but you – I can't imagine what they would do if they got their hands on you."

"You can say that again," Danny grumbled in reply, remembering all too vividly his conversation with Crithstain and subsequent fight with Pariah Dark.

"I'm sure you've been told this before," Mr. Lancer continued, "but you're important to this war. There are so many people who look to you for guidance, simply because of the kind of person you are. You're a natural born leader, and everyone can see it."

"Maybe," Danny admitted, "but I don't know how much longer I can take this. It seems like no matter what I try, I can't stop the war, even now when the fate of the world's at stake. What good is being a leader if there's nothing I can do to help people?"

The teacher frowned. "It's true that being a born leader can be both a good thing and a bad thing. But the true test in whether or not you can do it isn't in how effective your methods are – it's in how hard you try to never give up. What matters most is how far you're willing to go for the ones you've sworn to protect." He turned sideways on the step and looked at Danny seriously. "There will come a time when you have to make a choice – a choice neither I nor anyone else can teach you how to make. The choice will affect a great number of people, but it's a choice all leaders are forced to make in their lifetime."

Danny felt his chest constrict at the thought. He'd never asked to be a leader or to have followers, or to be the only one with a chance to save the world. "How will I know if I made the right choice?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"I'm afraid that's not something I can tell you," Lancer replied, the look in his eyes almost sad. "You have to do what you think is right."

"Great," Danny said ruefully, rolling his eyes. "More pressure."

Lancer smiled. "Don't worry," he said. "Like I said, you're a smart kid with a good heart. That's all you need to believe." Finally, he stood up and stretched his arms. "Well, I'd better get back inside. I've got a lot of catching up to do, apparently."

When he had opened the door and was about to step through it, Danny called out, "Mr. Lancer?" The teacher turned and raised an eyebrow, and Danny offered him a weak smile. "Thanks."

Mr. Lancer returned the smile, shaking his head. "Glad to see you finally learned _something_ from me," he observed, before disappearing behind the door.

* * *

Alright, short and uneventful, I know. But the characters needed a bit of a break, what with all the stuff that happens in the next three chapters.

So like I said, I'll get the next one up very soon. Shoot me a review on your way out, and I'll see you all shortly!

-oMM


	11. November 7

Hi again! Figured I'd get this one up quickly since the last chapter was kind of boring. This one's on the longer side (almost twice as long as the last chapter, in fact) and a lot more exciting. Time for the last plague! Oooooh... haha.

Part of this chapter may seem a bit familiar... heh. Enjoy!

* * *

_**-November 7-**_

"I know I've said it before, but as your friend I'm obligated to say it again." Tucker fixed Danny with a serious look, folding his arms across his chest. "You sure about this, man?"

"Tucker, you said it yourself, remember?" Danny countered. "If I don't fight, we lose by default. This is our only hope. Winner-take-all, right?" He offered a reassuring smile, glancing in turn at everyone gathered before the Ghost Portal in the Fentons' basement lab. It was early afternoon on the day of November 7th, and Danny was setting off for his battle with Crithstain to ensure he was there before midnight.

"Sure you don't want us to come with you?" Youngblood suggested, waving his pirate hat in the air and offering a grin.

"Thanks, but I don't think Crithstain will approve of my bringing friends to his private party," Danny replied with a laugh. Youngblood shrugged in response.

The crowd took it in turns to tell Danny goodbye and wish him good luck (Maddie wrapped him in a bone-crushing hug and refused to let go until Jazz pointed out that Crithstain would never take Danny seriously if he showed up with his mother hanging around his neck). He could tell that everyone was just as nervous as he was, but was grateful that they all could smile and stay strong and optimistic for his sake.

After all, if he never saw them again, this was how he wanted to remember them.

"I'm not gonna say goodbye," Sam said firmly when at last she stood in front of him, having hung back from the group.

Danny gave her a strained look, placing his hands on her arms. "Sam—"

"Just make sure you come back." She said it like an order, leaving no room for discussion. "I'm gonna see you again, okay?" Her eyes were boring into his with a pleading intensity, betraying the desperation her voice had hidden well. He was suddenly reminded of the asteroid incident over three years ago, just before he'd left to gather the ghosts in his plan to save the Earth. Sam's words and expression then had been the same as they were now. He remembered being afraid then, too, but looking back he realized that that journey had been nothing compared to the one he was preparing for now.

Danny grinned at Sam and nodded his head. "Yeah," he agreed finally. "See you." He pulled out the Infi-map and gave one final smile and wave to his friends and family, before gliding through the Portal and into the Ghost Zone. _Just one quick detour to make,_ he thought to himself as his eyes surveyed the map. Then he felt the familiar tug as his fingers stuck like glue to the scroll and the map sped off.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"It's no use," Valerie said with a shake of her head as she landed beside Sam and Tucker. "They know we don't have much time, but they just don't want to listen."

"We have to keep trying," Sam replied, stowing her ecto-gun in its holster across her back. "The less fighting there is in the world tonight, the better Danny's chances will be. And we need to do everything we can to help him." The word had been spread around the world that everyone should try and make peace, to prove that the world deserved to be saved and that there was still good in it. But clearly, that was easier said than done, especially in Amity Park.

"You're right," Valerie admitted. "But what can we do?"

"Have you noticed how everyone seems sort of… subdued today?" Tucker pointed out from their place near the rear of the front line battlefield. "The ghosts especially look like they're a bit less hostile than usual."

"Maybe we're finally getting through to them," Sam suggested hopefully, eyes scanning the crowd.

Valerie frowned. "Or maybe they're afraid of the seventh plague," she said grimly.

Sam felt a shiver run down her spine. It was the day of the seventh plague – the day Tucker had warned them there would be a great earthquake that devastated all of civilization. So far, nothing had happened yet – but it was coming, she could feel it. And she wanted to get everyone out of the center of town and to safety as quickly as she could. Unfortunately, they were having little luck on that front.

Just then, a shining red ecto-beam hit Valerie in her left side, causing her to shout in surprise as she was thrown against the street. "Valerie!" Tucker called her name as Sam spun toward the source of the attack to see Pariah Dark hovering over the crowd and laughing a low, menacing laugh.

"My King!" the Fright Knight exclaimed as soon as he noticed the newcomer. The Knight floated above the crowd and knelt to one knee in the air. "We weren't expecting your presence today. Where is Crithstain?"

"Our _leader_ had a previous engagement," the Ghost King replied almost scathingly. "He's gone off, for the time being." Sam, Tucker, and Valerie exchanged glances, knowing exactly what 'engagement' Pariah was referring to. "Meaning I finally get a chance to return to the battlefield. Though, possibly for the last time." A wicked grin spread across the ghost's face as he locked eyes with Sam and added, "I suppose I'll just have to make the most of it." In a swift movement, he swooped down among the crowd and was beside Sam, Tucker, and Valerie in no time. He drew his sword and Sam barely had time to grab her gun and use it to parry the strike.

As Valerie fired a missile from her wristband that struck Pariah in the side and forced him away, Sam gritted her teeth and aimed her gun, all the while wracking her brain for a way to stop this fighting and help Danny.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When the Infi-map finally slowed and came to a halt in front of Clockwork's castle, Danny rolled it up and opened the tall front doors without bothering to knock. The Master of Time would likely already know he had a visitor, so what would be the use in formalities?

Danny found Clockwork in his tower, as per usual, gazing into a time window and watching some children play on a swing set. "I was wondering when you would turn up," the old ghost said without turning around.

"It's been kind of busy the past few days," Danny answered in an even voice.

"Yes," Clockwork mused, still eyeing the scene in front of him. "I've been watching."

"Did you know this would happen?" Danny asked, watching as Clockwork's form changed to that of a younger man. "Did you know Crithstain would come when he did?"

There was a weighty pause, before Clockwork finally turned around slowly to look Danny in the eyes. "Yes," he replied. "When the war started years ago, I knew this would be the outcome."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Danny said, unable to keep the despair entirely out of his voice. "If I'd known… We could've stopped the war ages ago, before things got like this."

"You know why I couldn't do that, Danny," Clockwork said warningly, his eyes stern. "I exist outside of time. It is not my place to interfere."

"But," Danny argued, "if our world ends, then… time here ends, too, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Clockwork said again, his eyes glinting. "This place, this time will be no more. But it will create space for a new world – a new time to begin. That is the way of the cycle of existence. When one time perishes, another is born in its wake."

Danny lowered his eyes and shook his head. "But even so, what if I'm not ready for my world to just disappear?" he asked rhetorically.

Clockwork studied Danny carefully for a few long seconds, before saying slowly, "Why don't you ask me what you really came here to ask?"

Danny hesitated, before raising his eyes and meeting Clockwork's gaze. He could tell that the Master of Time knew what he was going to say, but also wanted to hear him say it. "Can you see what's gonna happen to the worlds?" he finally asked in a voice just above a whisper. "Do you know if I have a chance?"

Clockwork was silent for a moment, before he started to float back and forth as though pacing. "Many things in life are certain," he said finally. "For instance, this war was always going to happen, and you were always going to be very important to it. It was always going to spread throughout the earth, and yes, Crithstain was always going to come. You and he were destined to fight this battle from the beginning. Even had I warned you before, you could not have prevented it." Danny's eyes dropped to the floor and Clockwork stopped pacing. "However, if you're asking me if I can see the outcome of the battle, then no. Even I can't see the fate of the world after today, which means that it has yet to be determined." When Danny looked back at Clockwork, he saw that the ghost was smiling. "The future is completely in your hands," he promised. "You're the only one who can make clear the fate of the earth."

"So I have a chance?" Danny asked, his voice nervous and hopeful at the same time.

Clockwork's eyes gleamed, though his expression remained passive. "You do."

Danny took a deep breath and tried to let this information sink in. If Clockwork didn't know what was going to happen, then that more than anything proved that it wasn't decided. It wouldn't be easy, but as long as there was a chance… "Thanks, Clockwork," Danny told the ghost, a confident grin on his face. Clockwork nodded and turned back to his time window, signaling Danny that it was time to set out. He pulled out the map and cleared his throat, thinking of the place he needed to go.

And again in no time, he was off – this time with only one destination in mind: Tel Megiddo, Israel.

-0-0-0-0-0-

_This isn't right,_ Sam thought as she watched Jazz dodge an attack from the Fright Knight and fire her own at Pariah Dark as Tucker and Valerie cornered him from his other side. _We shouldn't be fighting like this._

As her friends knocked both ghosts aside and appeared next to her, Jazz noticed her frustrated expression and asked, "What's up?"

Sam shook her head. "This is stupid," she said. "We need to do something to stop this."

"You're right," Tucker agreed, "but what? Nobody wants to listen to us."

"Then we'll just have to make them," Sam replied, clenching her hands into fists. She turned to Valerie. "Can you get their attention?"

Valerie pulled off her mask and smirked in response. "Cover your ears," she warned, before pressing a button on her wrist and raising her arm above her head. A small antenna grew from her wristband and suddenly the air was filled with a loud, high-pitched wailing sound. Sam flinched and threw her hands over her ears, noticing as everyone around them reacted similarly. Some glanced around wildly for the source of the sound, probably thinking it was some sort of attack. When the sound faded, Sam grinned at Valerie and activated her Hover Gloves, leaping into the air and gliding up above the crowd.

"HEY!" she shouted over the group of fighters, and was satisfied when scores of faces turned toward her – both human and ghost. _Nice going, Valerie,_ she thought appreciatively. _I've finally got their attention. …Now what do I say? _"Look, I know nobody feels like having a nice little heart to heart chat right now," she said firmly, her voice projecting out over the crowd. "But I need you to just listen to me for a few minutes." She paused, and when no one resumed their fighting, she took a deep breath. "…What are we doing? We shouldn't be fighting like this – not on what could be our last day on the earth." There was a general murmur of protest, so Sam shook her head and made her voice louder. "I know it's not something you want to think about, but wake up! This, right here—" She spread her arms for effect. "This is real. This is _really _happening. And do you even understand _why?_"

"Like I said," Skulker replied predictably, "you humans should have given up long ago!"

"The ghosts are the ones who started this war!" someone below Sam shouted back. As a few more words were exchanged, Sam couldn't help but notice the very light tones of uncertainty in their voices. She knew everyone was already shaken by the news of the coming Apocalypse – maybe it was actually the perfect time to try and get through to them. She just had to say the right thing.

"NO!" she bellowed after a minute, stealing everyone's attention once again. "It's simpler than that – we're _all_ to blame." To her surprise, no one argued this statement. "_That's_ why we shouldn't keep this fighting going. Maybe it had a purpose once, but… not now. Not anymore. Now isn't the time for 'it's his fault' or 'her fault' or 'their fault'. There's no 'because of you' or 'if you hadn't'. The point is – the End of the World is coming. Do you all really want to spend what could be your last day… feeling nothing but hatred? Think about it – I'm sure there's somewhere you'd rather be right now, right? With a friend or a family – a brother or a daughter or a father. Isn't there something you wish you could tell them? Something you want to do with them? To show them? Well, news flash – you may not get another chance. Why waste your time here, fighting when you know that no one can win? Shouldn't we all for once just be together, for as long as we can?" Sam's heart leapt when she saw many people exchange heavy looks and lower their weapons and shields. Even the ghosts seemed to give in and back just a bit away from their former opponents. _I've almost got them!_ she thought, trying not to let her relief show on her face. "I don't know about you," she went on in a steely voice, "but I intend to spend the rest of the day with the people I care about – not fighting over something I have no power to change." Satisfied, she glanced down at her friends. Jazz and Valerie were grinning at her and Tucker shot her a thumbs-up.

"I appreciate your effort, girl, but when will you realize it's USELESS?" Pariah Dark suddenly shouted, making Sam jump in surprise and turn to face him just as he fired a powerful, crimson plasma ray straight toward her. Reflexively she threw her arms up over her head and shut her eyes, hearing a chorus of yells below, but the attack never hit.

"Do you know how rude it is to interrupt someone when they're making a speech?" a familiar voice said lightly. Sam's eyes shot open and she looked up to see the ghostly form of Vlad Masters hovering just before her, a shining pink ecto-shield between him and a seething Pariah Dark. He turned his head to look a shocked and bewildered Sam in the eye. "I thought your speech was very moving, by the way," he said with a small smile. "You really know how to reach an audience. You'd make a great politician someday – well, assuming there _is_ a 'someday', of course." He turned back around and fired a beam of energy at Pariah, who was hit in the stomach and thrown down to the street amid the crowd.

As Vlad and Sam glided to the ground, Valerie looked at Vlad incredulously. "I thought Danny said you weren't planning on helping us," she pointed out.

Brushing himself off, Vlad answered off-handedly, "As former mayor of this detestable little town, I just couldn't rid myself of this feeling of obligation to protect it."

"Well, whatever your reason," Sam said, "thanks." Vlad eyed her for a moment, before smiling in response.

"ENOUGH!" the Ghost King's voice roared. They all turned to see him rise above the ground, people everywhere scrambling to get out of his way. "THIS WAR IS MINE! AND YOU WILL ALL BOW TO ME!" With that, he dropped into a dive and sped toward Sam and the others, who braced themselves. Not a second later, however, a loud creaking sound cut the air. Suddenly feeling unnaturally cold, Sam turned slowly to her right to see that the building closest to them – an abandoned ten-story office building – had tilted slightly toward the street. Even as they watched, it began to fall, filling the air with the sounds of concrete splitting, pipes cracking, and glass shattering.

"MOVE!" Valerie yelled as everyone around them started to scream and stumble over each other in an effort to escape the imminent collapse. Sam, Tucker, and Jazz smacked their Hover Gloves and flew as quickly as they could away from the base of the building, Valerie following on her glider and Vlad close behind.

"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE!" Pariah Dark screamed, following them at top speed, a look of pure fury on his scarred face. They reached safety just as the building finally crashed against the ground, sending up a deafening sound and a blinding, choking cloud of dust. The Ghost King vanished beneath the debris.

Not seconds after the fall, another loud creaking noise sounded, and Sam glanced wildly around until she spotted a second building break free from the street and crumble to the ground a few blocks away, followed closely by a third somewhere off behind her. Shouts and screams filled the air as people dodged this way and that, searching for their friends and trying desperately to escape the destruction all around them. Almost all of the ghosts had fled, realizing that the battle was over and the earth had bigger problems.

"Oh, no," Tucker said, though they barely heard him over the commotion. "It's happening!" Just then a group of people somehow got between him and the rest of the small group, knocking him over and out of sight.

"Tucker!" Sam yelled, trying to be heard above the cacophony of voices. She shoved through the crowd, but he was nowhere to be found. Frantically she spun back around, but noticed quickly that Jazz, Valerie, and Vlad had disappeared as well. She heard a loud explosion nearby that rattled her teeth and jarred her skull. She might have screamed, but she could no longer tell which voice was hers. Someone ran into her from behind, knocking her hard to the ground. She bit her tongue and spit out a mouthful of blood before throwing herself back onto her feet to avoid being trampled by the frantic feet around her, running helplessly in every direction.

Just then, a howling wind began to blow, nearly knocking her to the pavement again. She looked out over the crowd to see a pair of people lose their balance and fall to the ground – just in time to be crushed beneath a pile of rubble. Sam's insides twisted in dread and she thought for a moment she might be sick, but instead she clenched her fists and dug her boots against the ground, steeling herself.

Jaw set in determination, she set off through the crowd to find her friends, hoping with all her strength that they were safe.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Guess that must be it," Danny wondered to himself as the Infi-map finally dropped him in a wide, sandy valley. His feet landed on a ground covered in dirt and dead grass, occasionally cracked and broken by rocks or long-dried streams. Before him was a tall hill, on top of which seemed to sit the ruins of an ancient city. Something in him knew this was the place.

When he reached the crest of the hill, he saw that the city looked much older than it had from the valley. There were many small buildings arranged in a pattern on the dusty ground, each made of what looked like rock, clay, and sand. There were no roofs on the houses – whether they'd been built that way or the roofs had simply caved in, Danny couldn't guess. There were doorways but no doors, windows but no glass. In place of streets were rocky paths dotted with patches of grey grass and weeds. The once-proud walls were now broken and crumbled, the ones still standing held up only by the mounds of earth that had risen around them. As Danny walked through the city, he realized he had no idea what time it was, as the sky had been dark as night for days now. Not only that, but it was eerily quiet among the ancient buildings, with not even the slightest breeze moving the dust from the ground.

When finally Danny reached the center of the city, the street opened up into a wide, circular area – and waiting in the middle of the clearing, mounted on his ghostly steed, was Crithstain. He was dressed in shining white armor and holding a round shield of the same color. His bow was strung and resting in the quiver across his back. The horse, who also wore armor made of white steel, brayed angrily when it saw Danny, its empty, black eyes glowing with what looked like an excited fervor.

A smile spread itself slowly across Crithstain's face. "So you learned the truth," he said in his cold, hollow voice. "I'm glad to see that didn't frighten you away. I was worried you may have given up, like so many before you."

"Not gonna happen," Danny replied icily. "I'm not ready to let my world be destroyed. And if this is what it takes to stop it, I'm willing to face you."

Crithstain looked pleased with this response. "Good," he said. "I'd been hoping the right choice had been made for the earth's representative. Now all we need do is wait."

"So what happens if I lose?" Danny asked, more to kill time than anything else. Maybe if he could distract Crithstain until midnight, he would have the advantage when the fight started.

"I will go back to where I came from and this world will cease to exist," Crithstain answered simply. "Soon another will be born in its place, and in its final days I'll return and the process will repeat."

_So Clockwork was right,_ Danny thought absently. "Okay, then what happens if I win?"

Crithstain laughed, sending eerie chills down Danny's spine at the sound. "The cycle has been repeating for longer than your human mind can comprehend, and I have been there all the way." He smiled evilly, eyes gleaming. "I _never_ lose."

"Hypothetically, then," Danny went on, keeping his voice level and not breaking eye contact with Crithstain.

"Hypothetically," Crithstain repeated in an amused voice, "if you win, I will disappear instead and the world will be saved – at least until the time comes for another like me to return. I can't say, however, what would happen to you. But don't worry – like I said, no one ever wins."

Feeling defiant against Crithstain's obvious confidence, Danny smirked and said, "Ever heard the saying, 'there's a first time for everything'?"

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Look out!"

Sam whirled around toward the unidentifiable voice just as yet another building began to fall. She jerked forward, but was nowhere near fast enough to save the two men that had been standing beneath it. Her throat tightened in grief for what felt like the hundredth time that day, but she quickly spun away from the sight, instead hefting her ecto-gun and tightening the straps on her gloves. She sped off at a run down the street, eyes searching wildly through the crowd as she tried to ignore the staggering wind that threatened to knock her off her feet.

Before she could get far, however, there was a deep rumble from somewhere beneath her and the ground began to shake. She activated her Hover Gloves and jumped into the air, gliding above the street as her heart dropped into her stomach in dread. She'd been in the air only a few seconds when suddenly a deafening crack exploded from the ground. Sam threw her hands over her ears as the street below her was torn apart, a deep chasm opening in the earth like a great maw. Everywhere she looked people were tripping, falling, scrambling to get out of the way. Some made it in time, many didn't. The sight was the most horrifying thing Sam had ever seen.

"Sam!" a voice called her name. She turned wildly around and at last laid eyes on Tucker, who was pulling Jazz out of a pile of rubble. With a shaky sigh of relief Sam dropped to the ground and sprinted toward them.

"Are you okay?" she asked them over the din.

"We're okay," Tucker shouted back as he helped Jazz to her feet, letting her lean on him for support. Her leg looked broken, but she was awake and alive – which was more than Sam could say for so many others.

"Good," she answered, meaning it more than she might have ever meant anything in her life.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"It's almost time," Crithstain said almost to himself, his eyes pointed toward the sky. Danny could hear distant screams and explosions, breaking the air in stark contrast to the silence that had been so complete when he'd arrived on the hill. Somehow, the quiet sound was more frightening that it would have been if it were louder. "Like music, isn't it?" Crithstain spoke up after a moment. Danny looked over sharply to see Crithstain watching him with an amused expression.

Danny clucked his tongue, scowling at the ghost. "Not exactly the word I'd use," he said coldly. Crithstain chuckled before reaching out his arm and swinging it in an arc. A cloud of black dust formed around it and when it faded, he was holding a giant red scythe that seemed to glow with a malevolent light – almost like fire. _This must be the weapon Dash and Kwan saw,_ Danny realized, trying to push down the strange and sudden fear he'd felt as he laid eyes on the scythe. Instead, he straightened his back and tightened his hands into fists, steeling his gaze and preparing himself for what he knew was about to start.

Suddenly, a great explosion seemed to break apart the air around him, deafening his ears and shattering his concentration. The bright flash of white light that accompanied it was so blinding that Danny was forced to raise his arms in front of his eyes to try and block it out.

"That's our cue," a low, evil voice said in his ear. He hadn't even time to lower his arms before he was lifted off his feet and thrown backward.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Sam stared at the distant, eastern horizon as the bright crimson glow faded from existence. She knew what it meant – midnight had finally come. It was their last day. She looked at Tucker and Jazz and saw the same expressions of shocked fear on their faces that must have been mirrored on hers, and she knew they were thinking the same thing she was.

_Danny…_

* * *

Alright, there we have it! There's only two chapters left in this, and I think I'm gonna wait 'til next week to post them just to let this one sit for a while. Did everybody recognize the scene from the prologue? It finally showed up near the end of this chapter :)

Thanks as always for the continued support of all my lovely readers/reviewers. You're all really keeping me going strong with this!

See you soon!

-oMM


	12. November 8, Part I - Midnight

Hey gang! This is another day I had to split into two chapters. But I think it works better as two, because it means this chapter is entirely the final battle, and the next is the aftermath and end of the story. So while this chapter is the final battle, it's NOT the end just yet!

So enjoy this nice, exciting chapter! I love writing battle scenes, and I had a lot of fun with this one. Hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

_**-November 8-**_

_**-Part 1: Midnight-**_

_Well, this is off to a great start…_ Danny thought bitterly as he pulled himself to his feet, leaning backward against the wall he'd been thrown into and blinking white dots from his vision. He rubbed the sore spot on the back of his head and raised his eyes just in time to see Crithstain hover over him, raising his scythe and bracing to strike. Muscles tensing reflexively, Danny dove to the left to avoid the attack, which instead sliced easily through the building behind him. He watched in stunned silence as the stone and clay began to erode into dust, as if a corrosive acid had been poured over the wall.

"This scythe was forged in the fires of Hell," Crithstain explained haughtily, "and polished with the cries of the dead. Anything it cuts is slowly eaten away, as if spreading death through it like a disease. A fitting end for a world so cruel, don't you think?"

Danny didn't answer. He glared at Crithstain before turning himself invisible and intangible and dropping into the ground and out of sight.

"You can't hide, you know," Crithstain taunted him, still sounding eerily amused. _This is just a game to him,_ Danny realized angrily. _He's so confident he can win, he's not even trying. But strong as he is, he's got nothing to fight for – not like me. We'll see how confident he is by morning._ Danny resurfaced behind Crithstain and fired a plasma beam toward him. It hit the armor on his horse and bounced off, leaving a curved dent in the plate. The horse whirled around and neighed loudly, rearing up on its hind legs with nostrils flaring in anger. Crithstain held his scythe high, the wicked grin on his face temporarily paralyzing Danny in sudden startled fear as he stared up at the rearing horse and its evil rider towering over him. The second the horse's hooves slammed against the ground and Crithstain charged, he snapped out of the daze and jumped high into the air, narrowly missing the swinging blade of the glowing scythe.

He flew higher into the air and out of Crithstain's reach. Thrusting his arms out in front of him, Danny fired a beam of ice at the horse, thinking that his chances might improve if he could at least immobilize the animal. He succeeded in freezing the horse's two front legs, and it stumbled before rearing up again and braying furiously. The ice inexplicably began to heat up and in no time it exploded, freeing the animal's legs once more.

Frustrated, Danny glided in a wide arc around Crithstain, trying to come up with a plan. "Afraid to get too close?" Crithstain goaded, twirling his scythe in a circle. _Duh,_ Danny couldn't help but think, though he didn't respond. Instead he began charging a green ecto-blast in his right hand, letting it gather energy as he flew around the outside of the wide clearing. When it had grown so hot he felt it burning in his hand, he changed direction and dove directly at Crithstain, firing the blast when he was as close as he dared to get. Crithstain reacted immediately, blocking the attack with his shield and swinging his scythe downward. Danny pulled out of his dive and just barely dodged the strike, feeling the warm stench of stale breath as the blade whipped past inches from his face.

A loud splintering sound split the air as Crithstain's shield cracked down the middle before shattering to pieces. As the ghost roared in anger, Danny laughed and said, "What was that about never losing?" As Crithstain set a glare on his face and charged forward, Danny dropped below ground again to avoid the attack. With a growl, Crithstain struck at the dirt and dug a wide slice through the rocky ground. As Danny resurfaced, remaining invisible, he watched as the ghost grunted in apparent frustration and stared at the widening crater in the ground. "What, no witty remark this time?" Danny asked lightly. Crithstain spun around in one swift movement, swinging his scythe at where Danny's voice had come from, but he had already dodged the strike.

Danny floated silently around his opponent, keeping as quiet as he could. Crithstain remained silent and still in the center of the area, obviously listening hard for anything that would give away the half-ghost's position. After a few minutes, he seemed to get tired of waiting and said, "It must have been hard for you the past few days, knowing that you alone were responsible for the fate of your world. You've protected so many – your friends, your family, even your enemies. After all your hard work, it would be a shame if anything were to happen to them." _If he thinks he's gonna lure me out by making me mad…_ Danny thought, glaring unseen at the ghost but remaining silent. "Especially the dark-haired girl you spend so much time with," Crithstain continued. Danny ground his teeth and bit back a retort, his body tensing up at Crithstain's mention of Sam. "But you probably needn't worry, Pariah Dark isn't that reliable."

_What's he talking about? _Danny wondered, having been thrown off by the mention of the Ghost King.

"Even though I gave him direct orders to dispose of that girl, there's nothing to say he was able to do so," Crithstain said with a passive expression, though his eyes were narrowed as they surveyed the area. Danny stayed just behind Crithstain, his throat tightening as the ghost spoke. _He's lying,_ he told himself, though he couldn't completely squash the fear that had started to take root in his gut. "Then again," Crithstain went on, lowering his voice, "I did give him a scythe just like this one."

That did it. Danny's sharp intake of breath was barely audible, but Crithstain heard it all the same. He spun around, swinging his scythe directly at where Danny still hovered invisible. He jumped in surprise and shook himself off, dodging to the side as quickly as he could react. He was able to get out of the way, but the blade nicked his left arm just above the elbow. He howled in pain and lost his focus, regaining visibility and dropping to his knees on the ground. The cut was very small, but for some reason it felt as though his arm had been torn from his body.

Crithstain's horse came to stand before Danny, swinging its head and breathing dark smoke through flared nostrils. "Human emotions are so predictable," Crithstain observed with a satisfied laugh. "It was a lie, by the way. I would never give that incompetent 'Ghost King' a weapon like this, or any such orders."

Danny glared at Crithstain before leaping back into the air with an angry growl. Immediately a shock of pain stabbed at his arm and he doubled over, gritting his teeth against the discomfort. He twisted his arm around to see the wound and noticed with a pang that already it looked wider than before – the skin around the cut had begun to slowly deteriorate just as everything else struck by Crithstain's evil scythe.

Crithstain laughed as Danny's eyes widened. "That's one cut," the ghost said with a cruel smile. He hefted the scythe over his shoulder. "Now it's time to break you apart piece by piece." He charged forward and swung his scythe again, and Danny rolled to the side in midair, missing the blade. He sped away from Crithstain as the ghost struck again, thinking wildly for a plan. He glided behind Crithstain and began charging another ecto-blast in his right hand, his left arm hanging numbly by his side. As Crithstain reined his horse, Danny noticed a gap in the horse's armor, just between the saddle footholds and the flank plate on either side. _It's a long shot,_ Danny thought, an idea finally forming in his mind, _but it just might work._

Setting his jaw with a determined glare, Danny few in close behind Crithstain to get his attention. The ghost spun around in his saddle and raised his scythe, an excited gleam in his eyes. Danny ducked down low, eyes on the scythe as it came whizzing toward him. He jerked his right arm forward and sent the blast still building in his hand toward the scythe, angling his arm so it struck the blade and knocked it off-course. Instead, the scythe sliced through the gap in the armor protecting Crithstain's horse, causing it to scream and buck uncontrollably.

Crithstain roared in fury and leapt out of the saddle, hovering just above the ground as the horse's legs collapsed and it fell in a heap to the dirt, still thrashing and braying while its coat began to slowly turn to dust. With another angry cry, Crithstain raised his scythe and brought it down on the ghostly animal, cutting through its middle and halting its wild movements. Danny staggered backward, watching with wide eyes as the horse's body turned to ash and faded from existence.

_Whoa… It worked,_ Danny thought, a disbelieving grin spreading slowly across his face. His smile vanished instantly, however, when he met Crithstain's gaze. All humor and excitement had gone from the ghost's face, leaving only cold fury. His ruby eyes shone vividly through the surrounding darkness, and Danny felt as though they were seeing inside him. He took a step back reflexively, every muscle in his body wanting to run as far away from there as he could and never look back.

"You may think you have the advantage now," Crithstain said, his tone icy and cold – entirely different from before. "That you've _outsmarted_ me… But make no mistake, I am infinitely more powerful than that animal. It's about time we end this fantasy of yours." With that, he dove toward Danny, who jumped in surprise and darted upward above the scythe's swing. He dropped a few feet behind Crithstain and fired an ecto-ray from his hands. It hit the ghost in the back, causing him to stagger forward but did no visible damage other than a small dent in his armor. Crithstain spun around and swung his scythe, this time giving Danny a narrow cut on the right shoulder. He bit back a scream as he felt the wound burn like acid, firing a beam of ice from his eyes toward his opponent. It connected with the chest plate of Crithstain's armor, freezing the solid, white metallic surface. Ducking under a swipe of the scythe that would have taken off his head, Danny darted forward, staying low, before firing a plasma ray at the frozen armor. He took another shallow slice from the scythe as he retreated – this time on his left side – but was rewarded with the sound of ice breaking as a giant crack appeared in the center of Crithstain's chest plate.

With an angry snarl, Crithstain grabbed the armor and tore it from his body, tossing it to the side where it fell uselessly near the outside of the circular clearing. Without a word he charged at Danny again, forcing him backward toward the edge of the city. Danny fired an ecto-blast at Crithstain, wincing as the scythe sliced his right leg. The blast hit the ghost in the chest, but did little more than shove him backward a few feet – and he wasted no time in making up the distance. Soon Danny's arms, legs, and torso were littered with small, thin cuts that grew slowly wider, sapping his strength and making his body scream in agony. And what was worse, nothing Danny hit Crithstain with seemed to have any lasting effect. Finally after a lucky dodge, pain spiked through a particularly nasty wound in his right thigh and his leg gave out, dropping him to one knee on the rocky ground.

Crithstain halted his arm mid-swing and let out a cruel bark of laughter. He raised his foot and pressed it against Danny's shoulder, shoving him onto his back. "And to think you actually thought you could win," he said coldly, lowering his scythe to his side. "You thought you could save the human race, but compared to me – me, who brings its destruction – you are so weak and powerless."

_No way…_ Danny thought with a groan. _If he thinks I'm giving up…_ He wanted to keep fighting – wanted more than anything to do something to stop this evil being. But through the desperate determination, part of him was afraid. Part of him knew he had already lost. _Everybody's counting on me,_ he told himself, thinking of all the people who had wished him luck the previous day when he'd set out. _I… I can't let them down, whatever it takes. …I just wish I had some kind of help…_

Just then, a thin shaft of weak, faded light glimmered into existence behind Crithstain, near the center of the area. _What… What is that? _Danny wondered, noticing that Crithstain didn't appear to have seen it. _It's gotta be too early for sunrise…_ He felt a stab of fear that maybe the night had gone faster than he'd thought. But something about the light seemed inviting, almost… safe. With one last glance at Crithstain, Danny summoned his strength and turned himself intangible, sinking into the ground. He heard Crithstain growl in anger before he resurfaced beside the strange stream of light. The ghost spun around to chase after him but froze immediately, his expression a mixture of fury and… was it fear? Danny looked up at the dark sky, but couldn't see an end to the light. So on an impulse, he stepped into it.

At once Danny felt strangely rejuvenated, as if just waking up from a good night's sleep. The light wasn't warm, but still the cold feeling of death began to vanish from his weak limbs. The cuts from Crithstain's scythe stopped spreading. He remembered what Crithstain had said earlier – _'Anything it cuts is slowly eaten away, as if spreading death through it like a disease.' _

_Huh,_ Danny thought in wonder, _then maybe this is some kind of cure._ Perplexed, he raised his eyes upward and suddenly a memory flooded into him.

"_You should be careful about using that bow," Pariah said evenly to Crithstain. "You know what would happen if it were—"_

_That's it…_ Danny realized. _The bow… That must be the way to defeat him for good!_ He grinned, feeling strangely elated that he had an answer, when the memory continued.

"_We needn't worry about that," Crithstain replied. "I'm the only one who can touch it. If anyone else were to try, they would be dead within minutes."_

Then another memory was in his mind before he had time to think.

"_What matters most is how far you're willing to go for the ones you've sworn to protect." Mr. Lancer turned sideways on the step and looked at Danny seriously. "There will come a time when you have to make a choice – a choice neither I nor anyone else can teach you how to make. The choice will affect a great number of people, but it's a choice all leaders are forced to make in their lifetime. …You have to do what you think is right."_

When the memories faded, Danny's chest tightened as he understood what it all meant – and what he would have to do to save the world. _I guess I did say 'whatever it takes'…_ he admitted with a rueful smile, shaking his head. He took a deep breath and raised his eyes to look at Crithstain, who hadn't come any closer. As the light finally began to fade, Danny felt some of the strength go out of his limbs, leaving him feeling exhausted once more, but he was glad to see that the scythe wounds remained as they were rather than continuing to grow in size.

"So," Crithstain said through gritted teeth, looking angrier than Danny had possibly ever seen him. "I see that grin on your face. You think just because he's on your side that means you can win?" He raised his scythe, ruby eyes reflecting on the glowing blade. "Let's see if his power is stronger than mine!" With a furious cry he charged toward Danny once again, swinging the scythe wildly above his head. Danny jumped into the air and dodged the wide strike, noticing that Crithstain seemed to have lost his concentration in his ferocity. He swung another wide, inaccurate attack, like he was trying so desperately to hit Danny that he didn't care his precision was suffering.

_If I can make him madder,_ Danny thought as he dodged another attack, _maybe I can use his hysteria to my advantage._ "You're never gonna get me, swingin' like that!" he shouted at Crithstain, laughing. "What's the matter, can't hit a moving target?" He spun away as the ghost let out a fierce bellow, flying at top speed into the ruined city. As he'd hoped, Crithstain followed him, chasing closely behind and swinging his scythe wildly left and right. Its blade sliced through walls and earth alike, eroding nearly everything in sight – at least, everything except Danny, who continued to weave in and out of the low buildings and narrow roads, dodging both Crithstain's scythe and the falling rubble as it tore the small roofless huts asunder. _Just a little further…_ he kept telling himself, pushing his strength to its limits to stay in the air.

Finally he burst back into the clearing, skidding to a halt in the air as he looked out over the pile of rubble that had once been an ancient city. The horizon was just beginning to brighten, spreading a warm glow across the sky far in the distance. Danny's eyes widened nervously – he was running out of time.

He spun around just as Crithstain emerged from the ruins, a look of pure hatred in his eyes. Danny's gaze flitted to the quiver on his back, and the black and red bow still sticking out of it. It was now or never.

Bracing himself and taking a deep breath, Danny charged straight at Crithstain. The ghost looked momentarily surprised, but quickly the surprise changed to insane excitement as he raised his scythe and darted forward to meet the attack. Danny angled his dive toward Crithstain's left side, and just as the scythe came down he rolled to the left in midair and shot over Crithstain's shoulder, reaching out both hands and grabbing the bow from the quiver.

Instantly Danny felt the ashen substance burn his hands like hot iron, but he tightened his grip and didn't let go. He landed unsteadily on the rocky ground and turned to face Crithstain, who was staring at him with a look of wide-eyed shock and rage. "You can't touch it," he growled, though it sounded more like he was insisting to himself rather than Danny. "No human can! It will kill you!"

And he wasn't lying. Already Danny could feel his strength fading fast. His mind was starting to numb even as his vision blurred, and in seconds his legs grew too weak to stand and he collapsed to his knees, his breathing fast and shallow, as his body finally reverted suddenly to human form. _No…_ he couldn't help but think, trying to stay focused. _I'm way too close… This can't have been for nothing…_

With a snarl, Crithstain leapt into the air and lunged forward, raising his scythe for one final, deadly strike. Not strong enough to dodge or block the attack, Danny shut his eyes and raised his arms above his head, waiting for it to end – when suddenly, it did.

A deafening _crack_ split the air, followed closely by the sound of howling wind – even though the air was still. Danny slowly opened his heavy eyes to see the blade of Crithstain's scythe stuck firmly into the ground inches in front of him, as if his attack had just barely fallen short.

"NO!" Crithstain screamed, and Danny lowered his arms to see that he was still holding the swirling, black and red bow – or what was left of it. The scythe and sliced the ashen weapon right down the middle.

Danny watched in disbelief as the bow quickly lost its solidity and turned to ash in his hands, sparking with light and fading from existence. Crithstain threw back his head and howled into the sky, his anguished wail mixing with the strange sound of whipping wind as the ground beneath them began to shake and a great chasm suddenly opened under Crithstain's feet. It was impossibly deep, with a sinister, fiery red glow shining from its depths. Crithstain screamed again as burning black flames stretched from the maw, engulfing him and pulling him slowly toward the endless darkness. After a horrible minute of thrashing and howling, Crithstain was gone and the chasm closed with another great rumble, sealing the earth as though it had never been.

As the sound of wind quieted, Danny stared at the ground, wondering if what he'd just seen was real and hesitant to believe it. But when he finally let it sink in that it was over – that _he won_ – he cracked a grin and began to laugh. It came out short and breathy due to the soreness of his body and the waning of his strength. Tired, he let himself fall forward onto his hands, before his arms gave out in turn and dropped him onto his side. His vision was further blurred and now dotted with blackness as his breathing slowed and his lungs started to empty of air. Through the haze, he looked out over the ruined city toward the eastern horizon, just as a warm, golden sun began to rise, bringing with it a brand new day – a day he'd won for the earth. Crithstain had been so confident, saying that he'd never lost and that Danny never stood a chance – but despite all that he was able to win against the odds. He thought of his friends and family, of all the people he'd left behind, and was glad in knowing that they would live on – that the world was saved.

"Winner-take-all…" he whispered with a weak chuckle, and his tired, clouded mind traveled back once more to his conversation with Mr. Lancer.

"_How will I know if I made the right choice?"_

"_I'm afraid that's not something I can tell you. You have to do what you think is right."_

"_Great, more pressure."_

"_Don't worry. Like I said, you're a smart kid with a good heart. That's all you need to believe."_

Danny felt a small smile cross his face as his eyes slid closed, and he found himself hoping he'd finally managed to make his teacher proud.

* * *

Welp, there it is! Remember what I said - this isn't the end. There's one more chapter with the whole aftermath, so you'll just have to wait and see what happens when the sun rises. Just know that after all the characters have been through in this story, I think they deserve a happy ending, don't you? Heh heh.

Anyway, I'll get the last chapter up by the end of the week, so no worries there. Review for me in the meantime? See ya soon!

-oMM


	13. November 8, Part II - Sunrise

Here we are, gang - the last chapter! We've finally reached the end of this long journey. And let me tell you, this is easily the cheesiest chapter yet, haha. It almost hurt me to write it, but it's the ending I wanted and I'm happy with it.

Thanks as ever to everyone who read/reviewed the last chapter. I'll have some notes at the end, but for now, enjoy the finale!

* * *

_**-November 8-**_

_**-Part 2: Sunrise-**_

As a fanatic of all things dark and Gothic, Sam had always preferred the night over the daytime. When the sun was out, she typically tried her best to keep herself out of it, instead seeking the company of the shadows that had once frightened her so much.

But on November 8th, 2010, Sam had never been so happy to see anything as she was that sunrise.

As warm, golden light stretched slowly across the horizon and brightened the early morning sky, Sam was suddenly filled with an inexplicable feeling of hope and contentment. She glanced over at Tucker and Jazz to see wide smiles on their faces, knowing that they felt it as well. The black clouds that covered the sky were finally beginning to thin and part, dropping pale streams of welcome sunlight onto the ravaged town of Amity Park. The city lay in ruins, with only a few buildings here and there still standing, but all around people were picking themselves up and gazing at the sky, turning to their neighbors with smiles on their faces.

"Isn't that the most beautiful thing you've ever seen?" Jazz asked in a light, breathy voice, eyes glued to the rising sun.

"I think I'm in love," Tucker agreed with a disbelieving grin. Sam felt herself laugh – her first real laugh in what seemed like a lifetime.

She climbed up onto a small pile of rubble and looked out over the wreckage. As the city filled with warm light, the survivors continued to pull themselves to the surface, helping the injured and caring for the weakened. Even though the city was all but destroyed, the sight was so different than it had been during the long war – so much happier somehow. It made Sam hopeful for the future – that maybe they would pull through after all and come together to rebuild the city and truly learn to appreciate the world they lived in.

"It's over," she said in near disbelief as she looked out at the ever rising sun. "It's finally over."

"Danny did it!" Jazz said. Sam turned back toward her and Tucker and saw them both beaming in excitement. "He saved the world!"

"I knew he could do it all along," Tucker insisted.

Jazz punched him on the arm, laughing. "You were just as worried as the rest of us!" she argued.

Sam laughed again, turning her gaze back to the people gathering around. All down the ruined street, voices were starting to laugh and cheer as everyone realized that the world had indeed been saved.

After a minute, Tucker's voice lost some of its vigor as he said slowly, "…He's not coming back, is he?"

Sam swallowed hard and didn't answer – didn't even turn around to face Tucker and Jazz. She trained her eyes on that golden sunrise and allowed it to fill the void that had slowly begun to form in her heart. As much as she didn't want to believe it, part of her knew that Tucker was likely right – that Danny probably wasn't coming back. He had seemed to know it when he left, though she'd still been too stubborn to accept it at the time.

She took a deep, cleansing breath and blinked the tears from her eyes. "No matter what happens," she said, still watching the sun slowly break above the horizon, "we have to live on." Finally, she turned back to Tucker and Jazz and gave them a calm smile. "Danny fought for us and won. He won the world this day, the next day, and every day after that. We should cherish it, and never again take advantage of this life we have. Let's show whoever's out there that the earth deserves to live on." Tucker returned the smile and Jazz wiped the tears from her face with a chuckle.

"Vlad was right, you know," Jazz said with a rueful grin. "You'd make a great politician."

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Danny opened his eyes, he found himself lying on a dark, damp street corner in a city he didn't recognize. He sat up slowly and looked around, taking in the sights around him warily. It looked like a big city, but he couldn't tell which from where he was. The street lights that dotted the road looked old and flickered every few seconds. Every so often a car would pass by, and only a handful of people were out and about. It must have been late at night, Danny assumed. It was strangely quiet, but not uncomfortably so. Moreover, the city had an oddly old-fashioned feel, like he had somehow gone back in time.

"Keep lyin' on the ground like that and you're like to catch cold."

Danny jumped at the sudden voice and shifted around until he found the speaker. There was a man he hadn't noticed leaning against the side of a building nearby. He was dressed mostly in black, hands hidden deep in the pockets of a heavy, ankle-length overcoat. He had a black fedora pulled low on his head, hiding his face from view. What was strange, however, were the shimmering accents of gold about his attire – the collar of his coat, the buttons on his vest, the laces on his shoes, and the band around his hat. He was very mysterious, but somehow Danny could feel an odd sense of familiarity from him, like he'd known him for a very long time.

Slowly Danny rose to his feet, eyes never leaving the man. "Who are you?" he asked curiously.

"Just think of me as a friend," he answered. His voice was deep and rough, but at the same time warm and gentle, like a father talking to a newborn son. "I saw what you did," he went on. "How far you were willing to go to save your world."

For some reason, it didn't even cross Danny's mind to find it strange that this man would know that. "Somebody once told me that a true leader isn't measured by how effective his actions are, but by the lengths he's willing to go to for the people he's sworn to protect."

"Good advice, that," the man said, nodding his head beneath his hat. "Must be a smart guy that gave it to you."

"Yeah," Danny agreed, smiling to himself.

"It's one thing to give advice," the man went on, "but another thing entirely to have the strength to follow it." Danny frowned at him, confused and wondering what he was getting at. "It's a rare quality to be willing to give your life for someone else. Shows real character. And me? I'm a big fan of character. So I'll tell you what I'm gonna do." He finally stepped away from the wall and walked a few paces down the damp sidewalk, coming to a stop with his back to Danny. He raised his head toward the sky. "Whenever I come across a real hero like you, I like to make 'em an example for the rest of society – to spread that good character of theirs as far as it'll stretch." He turned his head to the side and the flickering street light fell on his face, illuminating his mouth and chin. Danny still couldn't see his eyes, but he noticed he was smiling. "The world still needs you, kid," he said in a kind voice. "Go back and show 'em that character. And make me proud, eh?"

"Wait—Go back?" Danny repeated, confused. He took a step toward the man. "What do you—?"

"Now I don't like to make a habit of interferin' in worldly matters," he interrupted, "but never let it be said that there aren't perks to playin' my side in a game big as the one you just won." He pulled a hand from his pocket and brought it to the brim of his hat, tipping it forward. "See you 'round, kid." And with that, he stuffed his hand back in his coat pocket and trudged away.

"Wait!" Danny called, still feeling as though the conversation had been very one-sided. He ran after the man, following him until he turned sideways down a narrow alley between two old apartment buildings. Danny skidded to a halt and made to turn after him, but when he looked down the alley he found it empty. "Huh?" he muttered in disbelief. "Where'd he go?"

With a defeated huff, Danny turned away from the alley and back to the quiet street. His eyes traveled up toward the night sky as he wondered what the strange man had been talking about. All of a sudden, he noticed one of the starts appeared to be growing larger. He started at it, transfixed, until it was big and bright as the sun itself. "What the…?" He glanced around the street, but the few people out didn't seem to notice what was happening. Confused, he looked back at the sky and was almost blinded by the now gigantic orb of brilliant, white light.

"Whoa!" he shouted in shock, throwing his arms up over his eyes as everything around him was engulfed in blinding light.

-0-0-0-0-0-

It wasn't long before Jack, Maddie, Valerie, Paulina, and a whole group of people had gathered with Sam, Tucker, and Jazz near the center of town, in what used to be a battlefield but was now just Amity Park – their home. Sam had been surprised and glad to hear that despite the earthquake, Fenton Works was still standing, and everyone that had been in it at the time had escaped injury.

"Nice work, kids," Jack said jovially, slapping Tucker hard on the back and grinning. Tucker rubbed his shoulder and laughed.

"Jazz, honey, are you hurt?" Maddie asked her daughter, who was seated on a nearby pile of rubble.

"I'm fine, Mom," Jazz answered. "It's just my leg."

"You should come back with us for medical attention," Maddie went on, examining Jazz's injury. "Along with any other injured people."

Sam climbed atop a relatively tall stack of debris, followed closely by Valerie. "Anyone in need of medical attention," Valerie called out to the crowd, who all turned toward her at once, "please follow Jack and Maddie Fenton back to Fenton Works. Those with more serious injuries will be prioritized over those whose injuries are minor."

As everyone started to mobilize, Sam called out, "Just one more thing before you go." She glanced at Valerie, who gave her an encouraging smile, before moving her eyes out over the crowd. "We're all still alive because of Danny Fenton. He fought and defeated the evil that tried to destroy our world, and he saved us all." The faces that stared back at Sam showed a shocking range of emotions. Some were happy, some hopeful, some sad, some in pain, some curious and some confused. But no one spoke. No one asked where their savior was or if he was coming back. They all just listened, and Sam felt a warm surge of emotion toward each and every one of them. "Danny won us our lives, and our freedom," she went on, her voice stronger. "So let's not waste them – and make sure we never forget him or what he did for us."

"What, like forgetting me's an option?"

Sam jumped nearly out of her skin and spun around so fast she almost lost her balance and slipped off the stack of rubble. Her mouth dropped open and she fell into stunned silence when she laid eyes on Danny, floating in his ghost form just feet from where she stood.

"'Cause I'm not sure how I feel about that," he went on lightly, gliding forward and landing on his feet beside her. "I mean, shouldn't it go without saying that—?" He broke off when Sam threw herself forward and wrapped him in a tight embrace, unable to keep the excited grin off her face. As he laughed and hugged her back, she heard the crowd below them gasp, and then quickly begin to laugh and cheer.

"You're alive!" Sam exclaimed, euphoria filling every inch of her being. Then with a sudden stabbing thought, she pulled herself back and held him at arm's length, looking into his ghostly green eyes. "You _are_… right?" she asked, lowering her voice so the others wouldn't hear.

"Hey, don't worry," he said at once, as if reading her mind. He stepped back from her and changed immediately to his human form, before spreading his arms and spinning in a circle. "Ta-da!" he chanted, offering her a goofy grin beneath mirthful blue eyes. Sam laughed and punched him on the shoulder.

"Hey, save some hero for the rest of us!" Tucker called from down on the ground. Sam glanced down to see him and everyone around him looking up at Danny and wearing some of the widest smiles she had ever seen. As Danny laughed and jumped down onto the pavement, Valerie following right behind him, Sam found herself wondering if there had ever been a time in her life when she'd been happier.

_This may be the first time I'm this embarrassingly happy, _she thought with a small chuckle, _but I've got a feeling it won't be the last._

-0-0-0-0-0-

"So I guess I should say something, right?" Danny wondered aloud after an abnormally long series of hugs and kisses and tears and laughs. His eyes scanned the ruined city and he felt a pang of sympathy for everyone that had been forced to live through such a horrifying experience – and those who had been lost because of it. The city he had always called home was all but ruined now, not unlike the ancient city in which he'd just hours ago fought the most important battle of his life. But many had survived, and those that did would rebuild the city. It was home to all of them, and after everything that had happened he was sure they would want it to stay that way.

Maddie placed a hand on her son's shoulder. "You don't have to," she said with a shake of her head.

Danny turned his eyes to meet his mother's, a small smile on his face. "Yeah… I do," he replied. Without another word he changed back to his ghost form and glided up above the crowd, so he could see all their faces as they turned to look at him. "I want to thank you all," he called out to them as silence fell, "for sticking together until the end. Actually," he corrected himself, "not the end – the beginning. Today's a new day – a day we won't ever take advantage of again. Because now we know what can and _will_ happen if we let our emotions get the better of us in the future. This was a devastating, and… _terrible_ experience, but… we can learn from it. We can learn that just like anything else that's worth something in this world, life shouldn't be wasted, 'cause it can be taken away at a moment's notice." Danny could tell that what he was saying was being taken exactly how he meant it – not as a threat, but as a warning. He wanted more than anything for people to just live their lives, rather than squander them on useless hatred and wars. And looking around at the many faces watching him, he saw that they were ready to do just that. He gave them a wide grin and finished, "We've been given a second chance. Let's prove that we deserve it."

As the crowd began to clap and cheer, Danny dropped back to the ground amid his family and friends, all of whom were beaming at him. "My kid brother's all grown up," Jazz observed after he'd returned to human form, before reaching over and ruffling his hair.

"Are you kidding?" Danny replied, laughing and shaking her off. "I plan on making up for all this lost time by being a kid for the rest of my life."

"I hear that," Tucker agreed, giving Danny a light shove.

"Eh, _boys_," Valerie said to Sam with a shrug. "What are you gonna do, right?" Sam laughed in response.

"Jack, it's time we got everyone back for treatment," Maddie said to her husband.

"Right-o, Maddie," Jack agreed. He raised his voice and addressed the gathering crowd, "All the injured, please follow me—Jack Fenton—back to our house. Single file, please! And no pushing!"

"Dad, they're not kindergarteners," Jazz pointed out, rolling her eyes as she leaned on her mother for support. But Jack had already started down the road, holding up both hands to get everyone's attention (though he was already almost a foot taller than anyone else).

As the crowd dispersed, Danny, Sam, and Tucker hung back. "What happened to all the ghosts?" Danny asked after a few minutes, not having noticed any of them around town.

"They all just disappeared when things started going nuts around here," Tucker answered. "Maybe they were scared. Can't say I blame 'em. I'd have jetted too, if I was a ghost."

"That's still not out of the question."

Danny jumped and spun around at the new voice just in time to see Skulker materialize a few feet away, arms folded across his chest and a humored expression on his robotic face.

"So, you were able to defeat him after all," Skulker went on, this time addressing Danny.

"Looks that way," Danny answered simply.

"Make no mistake," the hunter said. "Just because the war is over, that doesn't mean we're all buddy-buddy now."

"You can't be seriously thinking of continuing to fight," Sam cut in, sounding frustrated. "You know what could happen if another war breaks out. Why can't you just let it go?"

"Who said anything about fighting?" Ember asked as she appeared beside Skulker. "You think we want another Apocalypse on our hands? Our existence is important to us, too, just like you dweebs and your stupid 'lives'. This war was fun while it lasted, but we'll be keeping our distance from you humans for a while, thank you very much."

"Really?" Danny said, ignoring the purposefully scathing tone of her voice. "You're gonna help us keep the peace?"

"Don't go getting all sappy on us, now, Mr. Savior of the Worlds," Ember complained, but a small smile crossed her face all the same.

"It seems the most valuable prizes are always the ones you can't have," Skulker observed. "I'll just have to find worthy prey elsewhere."

"Thanks, guys," Danny said honestly.

Ember turned to Skulker and said, "What'd I tell ya? Sappy." She shot one last grin at Danny, Sam, and Tucker, and vanished.

"Take care of your world," said Skulker, "so we don't have to do it for you." And with that, he disappeared as well.

"So wait…" Tucker began, sounding confused. "Are they on our side now?"

"I don't think there are any 'sides' anymore," Danny pointed out.

"Huh, I guess you're right," Tucker agreed with a shrug.

Sam gave Danny a nudge on the arm. "Looks like that means you're out of a job."

"Looks like it," Danny agreed, laughing. "I've been meaning to take a day off, anyway."

"Well, aren't we a happy bunch." They all flinched again and looked up as this time Vlad appeared beside them, a light smirk on his face.

"Do they always have to do that?" Tucker complained, shaking his head.

"Vlad?" Danny said, surprised to see him. Despite the initial shock, however, some part of him had been hoping the older ghost would turn up. "I thought you had 'no reason to come back'?"

"Well, you know," Vlad explained, waving a hand in the air. "Old habits die hard, as they say. I couldn't resist the chance to show all these lesser ghosts that I haven't lost my touch."

"Thanks again," Sam began, "for saving me before." So Vlad had saved Sam? That made Danny even gladder that he'd decided to re-enter the world.

"Yes, well," Vlad shifted his gaze between Sam and Danny, "it seems I've been doing a lot of that lately. Whatever would you children do without me?" He offered them a small smile, before turning around as if to leave.

"Wait!" Danny stopped him. "You don't have to stay alone in the Ghost Zone, you know. You said before that you don't have anyone to protect – anyone to care for. But that's not true. You used to be my parents' best friend, right? After all that's happened, I'm sure they'd want to see you again."

Vlad studied Danny carefully, tapping a finger against his chin. "I'll think about it," he finally promised, "but to be frank I think I've had enough excitement for one week, and these things always seem to happen around you, Daniel. After this, I could actually use a bit of alone time."

Danny grinned at the jibe. "Fair enough," he said with a shrug. "But the invite's always open." Vlad nodded once, and glided away.

"So what now?" Sam asked after a moment of silence as they finally started trekking slowly back toward Fenton Works.

"Well, Vlad's right about one thing," Danny replied. "We've _all_ had enough excitement for one week." Unsurprisingly, Sam and Tucker agreed simultaneously.

"I should probably make a formal announcement about the war being over," Tucker suggested, looking up at the sky. He was Amity Park's mayor, after all – they would expect him to say something.

"And there's a lot of cleaning up to do around the world, too," Danny said. "The earthquake caused a lot of damage – we're gonna need all the help we can get to get everything back to the way it was."

"Oh, no," Sam disagreed, pointing a finger at Danny. "_You_ are going to take a long, well-deserved vacation."

Before Danny could protest, Tucker said, "No use, Sam. You know he's gonna want to help out."

"I don't care," Sam persisted. "He's going straight home and not leaving until I say so. I'll chain him to his bed if I have to."

Danny raised his eyebrows at Sam and grinned. "That sounds fun. You staying there with me?"

"Yeesh, guys," Tucker groaned. "Talk about _that_ when I'm not around, will you?"

Danny laughed as Sam punched him hard in the arm, a light flush in her cheeks. "That's _not_ what I meant!" she insisted, glaring at both boys.

"Sure, whatever," Danny said off-handedly, prompting her to hit him again – though she'd begun to laugh too.

"So tell us about the battle," Sam said suddenly in an obvious attempt to change the subject.

"Yeah, dude!" Tucker jumped in at once. "Don't leave us hangin'! We want the full play-by-play on how you kicked Crithstain's butt!"

Danny smiled, his mind flashing back to the battle earlier that morning. "It wasn't too bad, actually," he lied. He knew they meant well in asking, but the last thing he wanted to do was relive what was easily the hardest battle he'd ever fought – and to be honest he doubted Sam and Tucker would enjoy hearing about it. "It seemed like it went a lot faster than it did. Looks like the guy was all bark and no bite."

"Figures," Tucker said, shaking his head. "Tough guys like him usually are."

"How'd you get back so fast?" Sam asked curiously. "You're not even injured – I think you actually look _better_ than when you left."

Danny shrugged. "I don't really remember what happened after I won," he told them, though that of course was a lie as well. "All that matters is that it's over and we're all still together." Tucker and Sam smiled, sharing the sentiment.

"Race you back to base!" Tucker suddenly said, before looking thoughtful and correcting himself, "I mean—Danny's house!" After all, the war was over – they had no need for a 'base' anymore.

Sam grinned at the challenge. "You're on, techno geek!" she chided, before setting off at a run, Tucker struggling to keep up behind her.

Danny laughed and smiled to himself, thinking of what he'd told the crowd earlier. They'd been given a second chance – him even more so than any of them knew. He should've died on that hill, but for some reason the strange man in the dark coat had saved him, giving him a second chance at life. He silently promised right then and there not to waste it, and to try his best to make that man – whoever he was – proud.

"Hey, Danny!" Tucker shouted as he and Sam slowed and turned back toward him. "You with us?"

"Yeah, Tuck," Danny called back, grinning and chasing after his friends. "I'm with you."

_**-The End-**_

* * *

...And everyone lived happily ever after! Haha, just kidding, but really though after all the drama and angst of the rest of this story I thought the characters deserved a happy ending, don't you?

I wanna say a big, final thank you to everyone who's been following this story with me. I wasn't sure from the beginning how well it was gonna go over, but a lot of you have seemed to really enjoy it, and I can't tell you enough how awesome that makes me feel. I really appreciate your taking the time to read/follow/review/etc. After all, a writer isn't a writer without readers to enjoy her work!

So thanks again, everybody! I hope you all enjoyed the ending! Drop me a final review on your way out and let me know what you thought, and maybe I'll see you again someday!

'Til next time, oMM OUT!


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